Former Manchester United player to be ‘strictly monitored’ by Conte as he aims to return Napoli to Serie A

Scott McTominay is not the first former Manchester United player to end up in Italy after leaving the club, with Romelu Lukaku, Chris Smalling and Matteo Darmian all taking the same path out of Old Trafford in recent years.

For McTominay, apart from the fact that he had been at United since the age of five, it must have been an absolute no-brainer. There is no doubt that Manchester is dark and that you need to enjoy the rays of the Amalfi Coast sun..

This of course involves a change of scenery, weather, lifestyle as well as diet: something that Italy coach Antonio Conte is strict about, as Lukaku had already discovered.

According to the local Neapolitan newspaper The MattinoMcTominay’s diet is “strictly monitored” because of the many temptations of Neapolitan cuisine.

Sadly, it looks like McTominay won’t be allowed to enjoy the delights that Italian cuisine has to offer, meaning he’ll be missing out on the famous pizzas, pastas, cheeses and gelato of southern Italy.

MORE MANCHESTER UTD COVERAGE ON F365…
👉 Chelsea strengthen partnership with Manchester United, ‘deal expected’ after submitting ‘formal offer’ amid ‘full green light’
👉 Manchester United’s sensational late exit ‘will NOT happen’ as striker ‘wants to stay’ and fight
👉 Manchester United sporting director Ashworth provides deadline day transfer update: ‘I’ve had a few missed calls’

When Lukaku left United in 2019 for Inter Milan, the 31-year-old was put on a strict training regime and diet when he joined with Conte previously revealing he arrived overweight.

In Milan, Lukaku’s diet consisted of fish, sweet potatoes, shiitake pasta and cooked and raw vegetables, and McTominay will likely be asked to follow a similar diet.

The move saw Lukaku score 78 goals in 132 games at the San Siro, helping Inter win Serie A, the Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa Italia, and McTominay hopes the new regime will allow him to guide Napoli to similar success.

Naples Last season the club endured a disappointing title defence finishing 10th, with star striker Victor Osimhen leaving the club to join Turkish side Galatasaray.

Conte will be hoping Lukaku and McTominay can both play a role in replacing the Nigerian’s 76 goals in four seasons at Napoli.

As for McTominay, he is no stranger to rapid body change, with the 27-year-old having grown from 5ft 6in to 6ft 3in between the ages of 17 and 19, missing two years of academy football due to his body enduring such an amount of pain.

The Scotland international made his full debut for Gli Azzurri last weekend as they travelled to Turin to face Juventus.

He is the second Scot in the current Napoli squad, after Billy Gilmour who left Brighton at the end of the transfer window to partner his compatriot in midfield.