Did Manchester United Make A Mistake By Selling Scott McTominay?

Scott McTominay is chasing glory. The midfielder scored twice in Napoli’s 2-0 win over Torino on Sunday to put his team three points clear at the top of the Serie A table with just four games of the 2024/25 season remaining. McTominay has five goals in his last three games and 11 in total this campaign. He’s been exceptional.

Indeed, McTominay has become the driving force behind Napoli’s somewhat unexpected Scudetto challenge. Last summer, the Scotland international joined a club that needed a new direction. Victor Osimhen left for Galatasaray while Khvicha Kvaratskhelia departed in the January transfer window, yet Napoli kept moving forward.

McTominay surely feels no regret over his decision to leave Manchester United for Italy, but what about the Old Trafford outfit? Did it make a mistake by selling the 28-year-old who was one of its most reliable performers in his final season at the club? Would United be better with McTominay still in central midfield?

Reports at the time suggested Erik ten Hag fought to keep McTominay. Manchester United, however, wanted to pocket the £25m transfer fee to satisfy Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR). Because McTominay was an academy product, the money could be recorded as pure profit. This was a big part of why he was sold.

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Nonetheless, Ruben Amorim must look at McTominay and wish he had a player with the natural desire and professionalism of the 28-year-old. While Manchester United has struggled badly for attacking firepower this season, McTominay has enjoyed the best goalscoring season of his whole career.

Napoli plays to McTominay’s strengths. Antonio Conte wants his team to overload the wide areas and provide service for the central midfield who likes to make late-arriving runs into the penalty area. This is exactly what McTominay did to great effect against Torino, scoring twice from such attacking moves.

Of course, McTominay is a long way from being the complete central midfielder. He isn’t much of a rhythm builder on the ball. His passing range isn’t great. However, Conte has harnessed the Scot by asking him to carry possession through the centre of the pitch. He has emboldened McTominay to be a finisher, not a creator.

Despite bringing him through as a young player, Manchester United never truly understood McTominay. He was played out of position and criticised by his own supporters when he played poorly as a result. Now, McTominay is in a team built around him and in a city that adores him. Manchester United never saw this sort of level from him.