Billy Gilmour and Scott McTominay help Napoli to win Serie A title

The Herald Scotland

24-05-2025

The hosts, a point ahead of Inter Milan in the league table after 37 fixtures, knew if they prevailed against Cagliari, the 14th place side in the top flight, that the Scudetto would be theirs for just the fourth time in their 99 year history.
But it proved to be a nerve-shredding evening for them.
It was that man McTominay, who has won the hearts and minds of the Neapolitan people since completing his £25.7m transfer from Manchester United last summer, who gave them the breakthrough they so desperately needed just before half-time.
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The 28-year-old netted an acrobatic effort – he held off Gabriele Zappa shortly before and volleyed home a Matteo Politano chip – to send the home supporters inside the packed arena wild and spark a mass pyrotechnic display inside and outside the arena.
Nobody will ever replace Maradona, the legendary Argentinian player who almost single-handedly led Napoli to their first two Serie A triumphs in 1987 and 1990, in the affections of the Gli Azzurri faithful. El Diego is a mythical figure for them.
But McTominay, who is set to play for Scotland in their forthcoming friendlies against Iceland and Liechtenstein, attained legendary status this evening. Gilmour, the former Rangers kid and Chelsea and Brighton midfielder who was excellent alongside him, also cemented his place in the fans' affections.
The dynamic duo became the first Scots to lift the Italian title since the little-known Jack Diment and James Squair helped Juventus to be crowned champions for the first time in 1905.
The Napoli players all understood that if they drew and Inter, who will take on Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League final in the Allianz Arena in Munich on Saturday week, failed to beat Como away then they would also finish first.
(Image: NurPhoto via Getty Images) But they were clearly intent on winning and being crowned champions in style. Manager Antonio Conte, who was banned from the dugout after being sent off against Parma away last weekend, set up with a 4-3-3 formation with Matteo Politano, Romelu Lukaku and Giacomo Raspadori up front.
Gilmour, who is not exactly renowned for his attacking prowess and has never scored a goal for a club at senior level, and McTominay, who has been on target 15 times for club and country in the 2024/25 campaign, were at the heart of all of the home team's best passages of play once the action commenced.
The former forced a save from Albanian keeper Alen Sherri after Napoli broke upfield on the counter and the latter, who had just headed a dangerous Nicolas Viola corner out of his six yard box, had a goal-bound shot blocked by Yerr Mina.
Raspadori fired just wide and Leonardo Spinazzola had two attempts denied after a mistake by Sherri. The tension around the ground grew palpably when news filtered through that Inter had taken the lead through Stefan de Vrij and leapfrogged them into top spot.
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McTominay, who took his tally for Napoli to 12 and surely ensured that he will be named Serie A Midfielder of the Season with his spectacular strike, reclaimed first place for them at a crucial stage in proceedings.
Manchester United fans – who were, for reasons best known to themselves, never entirely convinced by the player who chose to represent Scotland due to his Helensburgh-born father – must be wondering why they allowed the 6ft 4in colossus to leave for such a paltry fee.
The Old Trafford club have once again been dire this term and were left with nothing to show for their efforts earlier this week when they were beaten by Spurs in the Europa League final in Bilbao.
Belgian striker Lukaku prompted a full-scale pitch invasion when he put Napoli two ahead just six minutes into the second half with the kind of goal he has scored on numerous occasions in his career.
He picked up the ball in the centre circle, shrugged aside Michel Adopo and Zappa and fired underneath Sherri and into the bottom right corner of the net. It finished 2-0 at the end of the 90 minutes.
Few people in Italian football gave Napoli much chance of repeating their 2023 Scudetto win when Georgian winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was sold to Paris Saint-Germain for €70m back in January.
McTominay, though, has filled the considerable void which the former Serie A Most Valuable Player and Champions League Young Player of the Year left in the side.
Gilmour, too, has more than done his bit. He has his work cut out getting into the team with Stanislav Lobotka and Frank Anguissa in the squad. But he has stepped up when he has been called on and was outstanding this evening. He had every right to take a full part in the wild celebrations which followed the final whistle.
Scotland get their World Cup qualifying campaign underway in September when they play Denmark and Belarus away in their opening Group C matches. They will, barring injury or illness, have a Coppa Italia winner in Lewis Ferguson of Bologna and two Serie A champions in Gilmour and McTominay of Napoli in their starting line-up. It will improve their chances of reaching Canada, Mexico and the United States next summer.