Scott McTominay makes Scottish history with Napoli award and joins Cristiano Ronaldo as Serie A chief lauds star

McTominay has developed into one of Napoli’s stars since making the move from Manchester United last summer and the midfield has shone particularly bright for his club in April, scoring five goals in five matches, including doubles against Empoli and Torino.

His exploits have allowed Napoli to seize control of the title race in Serie A. With just three rounds of fixtures remaining, Gli Azzurri lead long-time Scudetto rivals Internazionale by three points and they can clinch the league crown by taking seven points from their matches against Genoa (h), Parma (a) and Cagliari (h).

McTominay, alongside his Scotland teammate and fellow midfielder Billy Gilmour, have become darlings of the Napoli support and the 28-year-old’s popularity was affirmed when he won the votes of the Italian football public to win the player of the month for April.

McTominay the pioneer

He becomes the first Scottish player to take such an award since its inception in 2019. His nearest competitors for the monthly gong were Assane Diao (Como), Dame Ndoye (Bologna), Jacob Ondrejka (Parma), Nicolo Rovella (Lazio) and Matias Soulè (Roma).

Previous winners of the player of the month award include Cristiano Ronaldo, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Paulo Dybala, Romelu Lukaku and Lautaro Martinez.

McTominay is also the third Napoli player to be named player of the month this term, following in the footsteps of fellow midfielder Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and forward Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who signed for Champions League finalists PSG in January.

Despite losing one of their best players in Kvaratskhelia, McTominay and his teammates have stepped up to the plate and are now on the cusp of making history.

On McTominay winning player of the month, Serie A chief executive Luigi de Siervo said: “Scott McTominay’s impact on this championship has been ‘devastating’, proving to be an absolute top player, the ideal prototype of the ‘box to box’ midfielder.

McTominay’s personal record

“The five goals scored, in the month of April alone, have brought Napoli back to the top of the table and allowed the player to set his personal record for goals in a season.

“He is the first Scot to win the award for Footballer of the Month in Serie A, an award obtained in total 11 times, out of 53 editions, by a Napoli player, the Club that today holds the absolute record in this special ranking.”