When Scott McTominay arrived in Naples last August, few could have predicted the transformation of both player and city.
The 28-year-old midfielder, once seen as surplus at Manchester United, has become the heartbeat of a resurgent Napoli side on the brink of winning the Scudetto. But beyond the goals, tackles, and tactical precision honed under Antonio Conte, something more human has unfolded: a relationship between footballer and city so fierce that it now echoes in pizza ovens, murals, and whispered prayers.
They call him McFratm.
The name—a mashup of his surname and the Neapolitan slang “fratm,” meaning brother—was coined by teammate Pasquale Mazzocchi and chosen by McTominay himself during a DAZN post-match interview. “Pasquale Mazzocchi would say Fratm, so McFratm,” he explained with a grin. The nickname, he said, was “the best one.”
For Napoli fans, the name stuck instantly. Not just because it rolled off the tongue, but because it reflected how he played—with grit, loyalty, and the blood-and-sweat brotherhood they revere. McTominay does not just represent Naples now; he embodies it.
McFratm: the nickname, the shrine, and a title charge
What began with chants and kilts in the Curva quickly turned into more permanent expressions. A shrine has emerged in the city’s historic San Lorenzo district, nestled on Vico San Nicola a Nilo. Above flickering candles and rosary beads, McTominay’s face stares back from a ten-foot mural by local artist Abso, his nickname inscribed alongside the number 8 and the letters “N4”—a nod to the city’s footballing identity and its chase for a fourth Scudetto. In front of the mural sits a humble orange football, a local symbol of street play and memory.
His impact on the pitch has been no less transcendent. With 11 goals in Serie A—more than any other midfielder in the league—McTominay broke Denis Law’s 63-year record for most goals scored by a Scotsman in the competition. Five of those goals came in three matches this April, earning him the Serie A Player of the Month award and placing Napoli three points clear of Inter Milan with three games to play.
“McFratm” has become more than a nickname. It is a signal of unity. A Scottish hammer dropped into the heart of southern Italy. A reminder, as Conte put it, that McTominay has “grown a lot” and is now “complete.” Even his teammate Leonardo Spinazzola praised him as “a special guy, golden, always smiling and happy.”
For a club that once worshipped Diego Maradona and now dares to dream again, Scott McTominay has arrived not as a savior, but as something perhaps more powerful: a brother.
