Manchester United head into a Europa League final tonight sitting 16th in the Premier League table – pointing to an astonishing lack of consistency this season.
The Red Devils lost their 18th league match of the campaign at Chelsea on Friday, while one of their former players closes in a potential title triumph in Italy.
In contrast, Scott McTominay’s Napoli have lost just four league games since the former Manchester United stalwart was sold for around £25m in the summer.
Former Manchester United star has his say
Former Manchester United winger Gordon Strachan has seen plenty of McTominay over the years, with the 28-year-old also playing a pivotal role for the Scottish national team, spearheading their qualification for Euro 2024.
Strachan believes McTominay’s exit has contributed to Manchester United becoming less reliable this season – then boss Erik ten Hag didn’t want to let the midfielder go, but Premier League profit and sustainability rules meant it was advantageous to sell a homegrown player.
“You wonder where that decision comes from really,” Strachan told FourFourTwo, speaking in association with Best Online Casino Nederland.
“The game is not going to change as such – you can talk tactics, systems, but wherever I’ve been as a manager or as a player, I wanted to go down the tunnel with good people beside me.
“They don’t have to be the best players in the world, but good people. If you’re picking a team to save your life, would you have Scott McTominay in it, if you were Man United? I would.
“Would I look about and see some of the rest of them and trust you with my life, especially maybe at that time when Scott left? I would definitely say no. That demeanour also spreads through the club.”
McTominay could become a Scudetto winner on Friday if Napoli win at home to Cagliari.
The Partenopei lead the table by one point from Inter, who travel to Como.
Should Inter draw and Napoli lose, both teams would be level on points – in that situation, rules dictate that goal difference is irrelevant and Napoli would face Inter in a play-off match to decide the champions.
