It had to be him. On the crucial final day of the season, Scott McTominay got Napoli’s Serie A title parade going with the opening goal in a 2-0 win over Cagliari. It has been the story of his and the club’s campaign.

Earlier this season, the Scot was asked about what his favourite nickname among the Napoli fanbase is. He was given a selection – and two stood out.

One was ‘McFratm’. It’s the Neapolitan word for ‘brother’ – the Napoli faithful now revere the 28-year-old as one of the family.

The other nickname: ‘apribottiglie’. It means bottle opener – handed to him due to the sheer number of times he has given Napoli the lead. He gets the party started. He did exactly that when his team needed it most in the 2-0 win against Cagliari on Friday night, when his team required one win to claim the title.

Nicknames are a big deal at the Naples club. Before his departure to Paris Saint-Germain in January, Kvicha Kvaratskhelia’s talents were so unique he earned the term ‘Kvaradona’. It’s some honour given Diego Maradona’s status literally hangs over the club.

But now McTominay is the one with hero status.

And for good reason. Despite Kvaratskhelia’s departure, the arrivals of Antonio Conte and Romelu Lukaku to the club over the past year, the Scottish midfielder is the main reason why Napoli have their hands on another Scudetto title.

His 18 goal contributions is the most from a midfielder in a Serie A debut season. It’s three more than Kaka during his first term at AC Milan.

And in Napoli’s run-in, McTominay was the bottle opener, starting the scoring in three consecutive league games in April against Empoli, Monza and Torino.

He has been crucial in picking up points during decisive matches all season, scoring in the first game against title rivals Inter – yes, that was an opener too.

And even though Napoli limped over the line for the title during the back end of the season, McTominay more than played his part. He basically carried them through. For example, in the 2-2 draw with Genoa a fortnight ago, he set up both goals – again, to put them ahead.

McTominay has been vital in this title-winning team, which some Manchester United fans may struggle to believe. Reliable and consistent? Yes. But two goals behind top scorer Lukaku?

Not everyone is stunned by this. “How you can sell Scott is beyond me,” former United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said this season. McTominay also scored seven Premier League goals last season and was a penalty area threat under Erik ten Hag.

But his 12 goals this season is one of many key metrics that have gone up since leaving Manchester United.

One of them is minutes. McTominay has been trusted more by Napoli this term than in any season at Old Trafford – and even more so compared to Erik ten Hag’s two full seasons at United.

But there has been a position tweak too. At Napoli, McTominay has been handed a more attacking role, similar to his status as a No 10 for Scotland. In the 0-0 draw against Parma last week, he was even handed a role on the left wing – which of course used to be Kvaratskhelia’s position.

As a result, McTominay has been even more of an attacking presence. He has created twice as many chances in the league compared to last season at Manchester United.

He takes players on five times as much as last term, while his pressing numbers have multiplied by more than four.

Where was this at Old Trafford? Firstly, there is the feeling that McTominay was misunderstood as a player. The Scot was often used as a deeper midfield option at Old Trafford – sometimes even the deepest.

A period playing as a centre-back for the Scotland national team didn’t help United’s cause – but how they failed to spot his potential higher up when Steve Clarke pushed him further up to being a regular goal threat.

Of course, Bruno Fernandes was United’s standout No 10 in McTominay’s prominent years at United. But it only adds to the frustration of letting a talent like McTominay’s go. He was not just misunderstood – but also overlooked.

He is not the only United player currently revelling in success elsewhere while Ruben Amorim’s side languish in crisis mode. McTominay has a Scudetto title to his name, Antony will take part in next week’s Conference League final – which Jadon Sancho could be involved in as well.

Dean Henderson has a FA Cup trophy to his name with Crystal Palace, while Anthony Elanga has justified his move to Nottingham Forest. Marcus Rashford looks better off and sharper at Aston Villa, with Tyrell Malacia a recently-crowned Dutch champion at PSV Eindhoven.

None of the above will hurt more than McTominay though. This was a United academy product – and remember this club has had one of those in every matchday squad since 1937 – winning a major trophy elsewhere, after bidding an emotional goodbye to the club nearly a year ago.

With Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho’s futures also up in the air this summer, it will hit home as to whether United is an appropriate development ground for those that come through.