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When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this boy.”

That statement proved to be something of an underestimation.

Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his first call-up to the senior England squad.

His rise from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a true throwback, a journey rarely told in the modern game.

What’s next? A major tournament?

“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, let alone playing in the Premier League and representing the national team too,” the player stated previously.

“It has been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for myself and my loved ones.”

So in what way did Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?

Learning in the lower tiers

Scott’s football journey has not been a conventional one.

He was part of over four years in Southampton’s academy setup starting at eight, leaving school early each Friday to fly from his home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could train and play for the club’s academy sides.

Prior to he turned 13, however, they released him. The Cherries gave him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind was not in it.

Instead, he opted to stay on Guernsey and play for his hometown club.

“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he explained.

“All I desired to relax at my home with my mates at weekends because I had missed almost several years of that experience. To have that little bit of youth back was something I really needed.

“To gain some confidence by coming back and taking part in island football was huge for me. It was probably the most crucial factors that got me to this point.”

When he was just 16, the teenager made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.

“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented at the time.

“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”

Returning to the pro ranks

Second-tier club the Robins – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been tracking his early progress after an promising start in adult football and arranged a try-out in December 2019.

“It was hectic,” said the player. “The first day I joined the under-18s, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.

“On the Wednesday I featured for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and on the Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a hat-trick. From that point a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”

Within a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut against the Hatters.

Scott made eighty-three league outings for the Robins while in his teens, frequently being used as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.

With his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to City and national team playmaker Grealish.

By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s best young player honour, was selected in the league’s team of the year and was named the club’s top player and top youngster.

“Without question, I believe he’ll play for England and I’m sure he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked previously.

Less than 90 days later, he joined the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of £25m.

Getting his major transfer

The midfielder experienced a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, waiting until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then finding himself in and out of the starting XI.

His second campaign was equally disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost several months.

“There was a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said Scott.

“That felt like yet another setback and it was turning out to be quite a terrible year for the first five months.”

But he was then called up by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.

He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they went on to win the tournament in Slovakia, forming a strong partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.

And he has started the current campaign equally as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to help them to fifth in the table.

“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special occasions of my career,” Scott stated earlier this season.

“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to keep progressing as a player, maintain my love for the game, getting better every day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”