McTOMINAY: Maradona is in our heads and hearts at Napoli … it’s surreal to follow in his footsteps

You see him on scarves, T-shirts and fridge magnets. His image is found on 10-storey murals and on stickers plastered indiscriminately on lampposts throughout the great sprawling city.

Death has not diminished the profile Diego Armando Maradona enjoys in Naples. As the locals never tire of telling you, God is everywhere.

Almost four years after his passing, the Argentinian’s standing in that manic part of the world only seems to have grown.

Those who witnessed him turn Napoli from perennial underdogs into two-time Italian champions and UEFA Cup winners have passed the story down a generation.

The joy the little man gave a downtrodden yet hugely passionate city across seven years was unquantifiable and eternal.

Those who walk through the doors of the dust bowl of a stadium he used to call home feel his presence and influence each day.

Scotland star McTominay is loving life at the Italian club where Maradona was a god

Murals depicting Maradona are to be found all around the bustling city of  Naples

‘He is obviously the most iconic footballer to ever walk and play the game,’ said Scott McTominay, who joined the club from Manchester United this summer for £30million.

‘When I first walked into the stadium, it was a surreal feeling knowing he is an icon, an absolute legend of football.

‘He is heavily in our hearts in Naples. The people absolutely adore him which is a huge factor because of how well he played for them and the things he did in Naples.

‘For us he is definitely in our head and hearts.”

In the 33 years since Maradona took his leave of the club, countless players have arrived to huge expectations.

Many supreme talents have found the demands of pulling on the iconic jersey too much. 

Those for whom following the side is like a religion have a habit of rushing to judgment.

McTominay’s early reviews from one of the harshest audiences in the world have been of the five-star variety.

McTominay speaks to the media ahead of Scotland’s game with Croatia on Friday night

Midfielder McTominay, centre, is joined by Scotland team-mates McKenna and Hanley

He’s scored three times in 10 games, the latest of which came in the weekend draw against Inter Milan in the San Siro.

Antonio Conte’s side are sitting top of Serie A, one point ahead of Atalanta, Fiorentina, Inter and Lazio.

For the denizens of the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium, that’s the way they like it.

‘Obviously it was a big decision,’ McToominay said of leaving Old Trafford. ‘There’s no denying that.

‘Times like that in your life, you just have to say: “Do I want to do it”?’ Absolutely. And go for it. There’s no looking back. I’ve never had any regrets in my life, or my career and I’ll continue that way.

‘I want my career to be successful and I’m going to go out of my way to try and push myself to be the best football player and best person that I can possibly be as well.’

It can feel a long way from the north of England at times, but contentment off the field has ensured he’s made a striking impression on it.

‘I’ve got great people around me who help me so much,’ he explained. 

McTominay’s fellow Scotland midfielder Billy Gilmour joined him at Napoli

McTominay says he has felt the presence of Maradona in the city and at the stadium

‘And the stress in my life is very minimal because I’ve got a really good family, amazing friends and I have a lovely girlfriend who all do so much for me. I’m very grateful for them.

‘Obviously, it’s not easy going abroad and having to settle in, but it’s been quite seamless, to be fair, in terms of how much the Italian people have helped me settling into my house and whatever.

‘Things I need like a car or a taxi or anything like that. So, yeah, I’m very grateful to them. They’re real great people who I’m very thankful for as well.’

McTominay will readily admit that getting up to speed with the demands of the game has been easier than grasping the language.

‘Italian is difficult. It’s not easy, I’m trying my best,’ he smiled. 

‘Obviously, it does take some time. But I’m trying my best to learn and be respectful to their culture and obviously look like I’m trying my best to learn.’

Billy Gilmour, who joined him at the club after leaving Brighton, has also enjoyed a warm reception. Despite not yet scoring, he’s at least leading the linguistic charts.

Asked who had the better grasp of the language, McTominay admitted: ‘I would say Billy. It’s similar, to be fair. We’re both picking up things as we go along in terms of understanding different phrases and stuff like that.’

Maradona will never be forgotten at Napoli for the way he inspired the team

McTominay had been at United since the age of five, making his debut against Arsenal at the end of season 2016-17.

He won both domestic cups across the following seven years but often, especially towards the end, looked like he could benefit from a change of scenery. He still refutes the suggestion he has been re-energised since the move.

‘I would never want to see anybody say I’ve got bad body language or I’m needing re-energised,’ he offered.

‘It’s obviously confidence that’s important. I’m playing in Italy and that’s a great opportunity for me to go and try and impress my manager over there and play as much as I possibly can to help us succeed in every game we play.

‘I always give my absolute best, no matter where I’m playing my football. And, for me … dedication, professionalism, I’ve tried to keep a hold of myself.

‘The things that I’ve done throughout my career have always given me the best platform to play as well as I possibly can do.

‘And that’s all I really focus on, to be honest. I don’t think about any external things. Football is my sole driving force,  my life, and I just want to play as good as I can every time I get on the pitch.’

So far, United’s loss has very much been Napoli’s gain. There is indeed a large swathe of his former club’s supporters who would already have him back in a heartbeat.

Does he take that as a compliment?

‘I don’t read the newspapers or social media,’ he insisted. ‘That’s something I stay well away from. There’s no reason for me to pay attention to that. I want to do as well as I can for them (the Napoli fans).

‘The past is the past. I’m enjoying my football and just want to do everything in my powers to push my team higher up the table and do my best for my manager in Italy as well.’

Scotland supporters are only glad that he also belongs to them for as long as his legs will carry him.

The stand-out player of the Euro qualifying campaign with seven goals, he managed the side’s only one in the competition proper by netting against the Swiss.

His own stellar contribution could not mask the crushing disappointment felt at the failure of Steve Clarke’s side to properly turn up.

Scotland are better than they demonstrated in Germany, a team whose collective talent isn’t worthy of a run showing just one win in the last 16 games.

‘I feel like we’re learning all the time,’ said McTominay. ‘Getting to two major tournaments was amazing and everyone was happy about that.

‘But the actual players in the dressing room were saying: “No, we want to go on further – we want to push out the group and we want to keep progressing as a team”.

‘We want to really raise everyone’s profiles where we feel like we are capable of beating your pot-one teams.

‘I feel like we have more than enough quality in our squad to do that. We want to be the most successful Scottish team in history.’

A formidable talent with boundless ambition? El Diego would certainly approve.