Scott McTominay is among several former Manchester United players who have flourished after departing Old Trafford, having gone on to win the Serie A title and the league’s Player of the Year award with Napoli.
United cannot be blamed
Despite the growing list of players thriving away from the club, the Scotland international told CBS Sports that Manchester United are often unfairly criticised when comparisons are made between players’ performances before and after leaving.
“It’s too easy of an excuse to say, ‘Oh they left Man United, and now they’re doing well.’ In my last year, I did well – I scored 10 goals and we won a trophy.
“Because the spotlight is directly on you, it makes it seem a lot worse, in my opinion. Obviously, when players go away and they play more games, they’re going to have an increase in confidence and feel better about themselves rather than playing less minutes at Man United for example.
“But when you are at Man United, you have to earn those minutes like Bruno Fernandes, who has done incredible.”
Rashford is a different subject
After finishing 18th in the 2025 Ballon d’Or rankings, McTominay also shared his thoughts on Marcus Rashford, who is currently enjoying his time in La Liga with Barcelona on loan, with the option of a permanent move in the summer.
McTominay acknowledged Rashford’s quality but suggested the club should not shoulder responsibility for the forward’s struggles prior to his fallout with manager Ruben Amorim.
“With Marcus, obviously there were different issues which might have transpired that we won’t go into.
“However, Marcus is a top player and he’s always been a top player, he’s one of the club legends, he’s scored so many goals for Man United, done so many great things.”
Manchester United sold McTominay for a reported £26 million, a fee that now appears to be excellent value for Napoli, who are once again in the title race under head coach Antonio Conte.
