As the Serie A trophy was being painstakingly engraved behind the scenes at the Diego Maradona and a city erupted in celebration, Scott McTominay was on his haunches and full of emotion.
Napoli beat Cagliari 2-0 to claim their fourth Scudetto and the players soaked up the moment after the game with fans, staff, club owner and president Aurelio De Laurentiis, and Antonio Conte.
The head coach was on the pitch after serving a touchline ban and shared an embrace with striker Romelu Lukaku, who scored the second goal to put the title beyond doubt.
Advert
McTominay had spectacularly volleyed in the first and took a tearful moment inside the stadium as Naples glowed around the outside of the Diego Maradona.
The Scotland international earned every bit of the admiration he now enjoys as a champion in one of football's great cities, scoring 12 times and assisting four goals to cap off a massive contribution to a historic title triumph in Serie A.
Napoli added this season's title to wins in 1987, 1990 and 2023.
Advert
Diego Maradona was the captain for the first two Scudetto wins, a feat now matched by 31-year-old Giovanni Di Lorenzo, who will lift the freshly etched trophy tonight.
McTominay was a big-money signing for the Partenopei last summer and hit his footballing peak at the perfect moment.
He has emerged as one of Europe's most impactful, most influential midfield players and was arguably Napoli's most important player without exception this season.
The 28-year-old Lancastrian's teammates under Conte include former Manchester United colleague Lukaku, fellow Scottish international Billy Gilmour and on-loan Bournemouth midfielder Phillip Billing, who came on as a late substitute against Cagliari and was on the field when the final whistle was blown on an incredible season for the Naples club.
Napoli will now return to the Champions League after finishing tenth last season, more than 40 points behind winners Inter Milan, and losing Victor Osimhen on loan and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to Champions League finalists Paris Saint-Germain.
Advert
Conte has now won the Scudetto with three different clubs and was at the heart of the jubilation but it was McTominay whose reaction attracted the television cameras at the end of a stellar campaign.
After more than 20 years on the books at Man Utd, McTominay now has his first league title. He was the star of the show.
Topics: Scott Mctominay, Napoli, Serie A
Chris Nee