Sacchi: McTominay a key influence on Napoli title surge

The Scottish midfielder joined from Manchester United in August.

Former Italy coach Sacchi told La Gazzetta dello Sport: “Napoli, in my opinion, is the team that has made the most clear progress. Antonio Conte is a master who loves his job so much and transmits this passion to his players. In short times he has been able to form a group and the first place in the rankings is no coincidence.

“Conte demands a lot from his players physically and hammers them psychologically. In short, he is the added value of this team that, after winning the Scudetto with Spalletti, has had a negative season.

“What impressed me at Napoli is the compactness of the team, the ability to defend with eleven and attack with eleven, always with the right distances. This means that Conte's lessons have been perfectly understood. The midfielders move in sync and the momentum of the wingers is constant and always creates danger for the opponents.

“I admire the addition of McTominay, an element that is proving very valuable to Conte's game: he helps in the containment phase and has flashes of a real trequartista.

“Even mentally I noticed an evolution: the defeat against Atalanta could have caused problems and instead Napoli responded with an excellent performance against Inter. A sign of maturity. The Scudetto will be played until the end with Atalanta, Inter and Juve. “