Alex Scott has reiterated his desire to play in the Premier League as he takes inspiration from watching England at the World Cup.
The Bristol City wonderkid had a taste of international success this summer when he lifted the Euro Under-19 trophy with the Three Lions, which he described as the "best summer and best experience of his life."
Nobody would put it past Scott to represent England at the 2026 World Cup should his progression continue on a similar trajectory since breaking into the City senior side at the beginning of last season. His ability and potential have had Premier League scouts around the country flocking to see him in action and it's undoubtedly only a matter of time before he makes the step up.
For now, Scott is aware his development is best suited to playing regularly under Nigel Pearson but the club are under no illusions that a move beckons, whether that's at the end of this season or the following summer. He has a contract in BS3 until 2025.
As England prepare to take on Wales this evening in their final group game, Scott can't help but dream it will be him on the biggest stage of all in the future.
Speaking to the Guernsey Press Sport Podcast, the 19-year-old said: "They're an inspiration to any young lad from England playing football and any country around the world. They are all players playing in the Premier League and that's the league kids growing up want to be playing in.
"It's the same for me, even though I'm playing in the Championship you want to go to the next step and play in the Premier League and play for your country so they're an inspiration to all of us."
Scott left Guernsey at the age of 16 for the City academy and hasn't looked back. The importance of his role in the side was reflected last season when tasked with playing a large chunk of the season at right wing-back.
Now predominantly back in his natural midfield role, the youngster had to develop and learn certain attributes such as the defensive side of his game, which he has previously credited to becoming an all-around better player.
But there are still parts of his game he is still working hard on including contributing more goals and assists. He has yet to find the net this season in his 20 league appearances.
"I've definitely progressed a lot," he added. "I feel like I've matured a lot, grown up a lot and I feel that's both on the pitch and off it too. Moving away when I was 16 and going into digs, a whole lot of credit has to go to them (Bristol City) as well. They took me under their wing and treated me as one of their own.
"And I'm sure my mum and dad are very grateful for that. On the pitch, I think my game has developed massively. Knowing when to dribble, when to pass, when to shoot. Obviously, there's a lot of things I can work on.
"Scoring more goals that's something me and the coaches and players at Bristol City are working on massively. I know I need to be scoring more goals and getting more assists but I'm still young and I've still got a lot of time."
Scott also paid credit to the City fans for their continued support both of him and the team. They return to league action against Rotherham on December 10 just one point above the drop zone.
He said: "The City fans are really good, I really like my song as well. I like to hear it when I go to take a corner in front of Section 82. They're brilliant and I can't thank them enough really for the support they've shown us even when we've not been doing so well and hopefully, we can pay them back and start getting better results.
"We're playing well at times and (also) had not-so-good games. I think we've had tough spells where we know we could do better. We've got a lot of quality in our team, maybe more quality than some of the teams above us so it's finding that balance between playing well and getting those points."
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