Scott McTominay, Napoli's Scottish midfielder, missed the club's first international friendly of pre-season against Osasuna but is reported to be close to returning to training, giving the coaching staff an early indication of when their most productive central player from last season will be available.
The timing matters. McTominay finished 2025-26 with ten goals and three assists across 32 Serie A appearances, an average rating of 7.10, and a Napoli side that accumulated 73 points from 37 matches to finish second in the table. Those numbers made him one of the more complete box-to-box contributors in the division.
Napoli beat Osasuna 2-1 in their friendly, with Matteo Politano and Lorenzo Lucca on the scoresheet, but McTominay's absence from the squad was the more instructive detail. Pre-season absences are not always alarming, but for a player whose goal contribution was central to Napoli's attacking identity last season, every week without him is a week the coaching staff cannot properly assess midfield options or settle on a shape.
The club's transfer activity adds another layer of complexity. Napoli are being linked with Gabriel Jesus from Arsenal, a forward profile that would alter the attacking balance of the squad and potentially change what is asked of the midfielders behind him. A physical, pressing centre-forward demands runners and carriers from deep; McTominay, with ten league goals last season, has shown he can be exactly that.
At 29, McTominay is at the point in a career where pre-season fitness is not merely preparation — it is a statement of availability and relevance to the club's coaching regime. His place in Napoli's plans is not guaranteed by reputation alone. His return to full training, when it comes, will be one of the more closely watched moments of Napoli's summer.