'A lot of suitors' - Scott McTominay gets Premier League transfer advice amid bid to replicate Napoli heroics for Scotland at 2026 World Cup

Published Jun. 22, 2026 6:46 a.m. ET

GOAL

Title, MVP award & goals: McTominay's record after leaving Man Utd

A brave career call was made by the 72-cap Scotland international during the summer of 2024 when exit doors swung open at Old Trafford. The

With a £26 million ($34m) fee changing hands,

Having often been restricted to a holding role in Manchester, while not always being a guaranteed starter, McTominay has blossomed after adding a more buccaneering element to his game. He is also

Living the dream! Would McTominay want a Premier League return?

Transfer talk has inevitably surfaced on the back of doing so well, but should McTominay be giving

“He's really acclimatised himself to life in Naples. He's clearly loving his football. When you're winning things as well as a player, when you go into that league and you win the league and you get the MVP of the league.

“I'm sure there'll be people who would love to sign Scott McTominay, that's just the nature of football, but it would maybe take something special for him to leave, because it looks like he's adored by the fans. How highly they regard him and how they talk about him, that's something special for a player to have, to feel that adoration.

“You just feel comfortable enjoying your football. There's a lot to be said for it. Sometimes when you move on and it's a different style or it's a different coach, there's just different elements that come into your performance. Whether it's as a player or your happiness, it's not always easy. It's just, ‘I'm doing it there, I'll just jump into there and do the exact same and feel the same’.

“There'll be a lot to consider for him. But the one thing for sure is, if Scott wanted a change, and if it was the Premier League he wanted to come back to, I'm sure there would be a lot of suitors that would be more than happy to take him.”

Tartan Army! McTominay has grown into a leadership role with Scotland

Having starred at club level, McTominay is now gracing the most prominent of international stages. Scotland opened their first World Cup campaign since 1998 with a 1-0 win over Haiti, before

On learning how to handle that responsibility, and embracing added pressure, Miller added on McTominay’s development: “I think he’s grown into that role, and not just for Scotland. When you go into Napoli and you get the MVP of the league in his first year, you win the league. There's talk about you being in the Ballon d’Or reckoning, you're actually in the top 20 for it, that propels you onto a different level, and he's done that.

“His game has gone to another level from watching him on the national team in the last five, six years. His game has just gone through the roof. He's a wonderful football player, simple as that.

“But I'm always reluctant to start pinning your hopes on one guy. It's not how football works, unless you're the best player in the world! But Scotland have got good players about Scott as well. He is one of the best players, if not the best player that we've got, but there are really good players about him.

“The strength of Scotland is going to be the squad and the team, it's not going to be any individual. Of course, within that, individuals can excel. Scott has been one of those guys in the last three, four seasons that has definitely excelled. There's no doubt about that. I think when you're looking for moments, he's one of the guys that could deliver a moment.

“John McGinn, he always pops up with goals, he always seems to get on the end of chances as well. I like Ben Gannon-Doak, I think he's got something different from anyone else in the squad that we've missed as a nation over the last I don't even know how long. Having a player that's got those type of abilities is a real threat - whether it be starting the game or coming off the bench, you can come on and impact it as well.

“Scott, the nature of what he's done now in the last few seasons, he has to just deal with that. And you know what? He's dealing with it fine for me. He looks like he's dealing with it fine.

“When you come up in these major tournaments, you're playing against some top teams. It's not going to be as easy as rolling them over. We've even seen the game against Haiti wasn't easy. We got the result, but it wasn't easy. You're not just going to turn up to a World Cup and start dominating and having it all your own way.

“Personally, I think he's played in a bit of a different role as well. He's still doing what he does, but he has maybe got a little bit more responsibility on him in relation to trying to get the build-up and taking part in different phases of the game than maybe what it had been if he's just been allowed to be that guy who's just charging and he's getting into the box.

“But again, what I would say is I've seen him play so many times that I think he can do everything. I think he can do a bit of everything as a midfielder. He's a real all-rounder. I think in some of the build-up as well, he can get involved in that.

“In the absence of Billy Gilmour, I think we need someone to actually be able to take control of a game and put his foot on the ball sometimes and maybe start to try and dictate the tempo. I've seen a bit of Scott doing that in the games, the build-up games and then obviously the first games. He's playing that a little bit deeper, maybe where Billy would be.

“But it's not stopping him getting in the box. It's not stopping him having that desire to arrive in the box with crosses or cutbacks and get forward and be a goal threat. I don't think it's hampering his game at all, but maybe there's a little bit more responsibility on him to take more part in that stage of the game.”