From the age of 8, Alex Scott used to leave school early on Fridays and travel with one of his parents to soccer practice.
It wasn’t a normal journey.
It involved flying from Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands near to the coast of northern France, to the English mainland where Scott would go to sessions with the academies of Southampton — a club then in the Premier League — and later Bournemouth.
More than a decade later, all that time and effort is paying off.
On Tuesday, Scott looked back fondly on that unusual start to his footballing life after joining up with the senior England squad for the first time — seven months ahead of the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
“It took a lot for our parents, you know, the amount of money they were paying and the dedication they put in for us to dream to be footballers,” he said in a nod to his step-sister, current England women’s international Maya Le Tissier, who also would go on to make the same journey from Guernsey to England as a teenager.
“It’s a credit to them. We’re just happy now we’re both paying at the top level.”
Scott has never had it easy.
He was released by Southampton at the age of 12, before — after a brief period with Bournemouth — deciding to play local soccer in Guernsey so he could have a bit more of a normal childhood.
Eventually he made it over to England where he signed for lower-league side Bristol City. But after joining Bournemouth in 2023 he immediately picked up injuries that have limited his game time in the Premier League. Most recently, he broke his jaw in May and missed the start of the Under-21 European Championship, which he ended up winning with England.
This season, he has taken another step up — helped by Bournemouth’s latest strong start to a season — to gain the attention of England coach Thomas Tuchel.
“Six years ago, I was playing non-league football for Guernsey (a team in England’s eighth tier) and I wasn’t even sure I was going to make it as a football player so to now be in the England team is a dream come true,” Scott said.
He has picked up the nickname “Guernsey Grealish” because of the similarities with Jack Grealish, the winger on loan at Everton from Manchester City, in the way he progresses with the ball at his feet and his socks rolled down low.
If he does make it into the England team, he could play alongside Elliot Anderson, who he partnered in midfield for the under-21 team and has also been promoted to the senior team.
England plays Serbia and Albania in upcoming World Cup qualifiers, having already secured a place in next year’s tournament.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Steve Douglas, The Associated Press
