McTominay cleared to play again, back in training with Napoli

Scott McTominay has been cleared to play again after the cardiac ablation surgery he underwent on 8 September in Manchester to fix a benign arrhythmia. Corriere dello Sport, Tuttosport, ANSA, Calciomercato.com and Sky Sport all confirmed it on the same day: the medical checks completed today close out the process, and the Scot can now train with the rest of the squad with no restrictions.

The midfielder had been out since 30 August, when he last played against Como. After the operation he followed a personalised programme between England and Castel Volturno, training on the pitch with his teammates but always without contact and without taking part in tactical drills. Medical clearance was the last step needed to lift that limit too.

It is still unclear when Allegri will actually be able to start him again. Napoli host Frosinone at the Maradona on Saturday at 20:45, but McTominay will have only a few days of full training behind him after a month out: both Corriere dello Sport and Tuttosport agree a call-up is possible, while a start from the first minute remains unlikely. The club, in the statement carried by Calciomercato.com, describes his return as "gradual". The schedule offers further chances soon enough: Villarreal on Tuesday, then Venezia.

For anyone holding him in a fantasy team, McTominay's return matters as much as his role in Allegri's side. MVP in his first season in Italy and one of the key figures in the title won under Conte, he is the midfielder Napoli have missed most in his absence: with him on the pitch the club have won 59% of their league games, 48 out of 82, while without him that drops to 40%, just 6 wins out of 15.

On the fantacalcio market McTominay is priced at 27, in the 21-30 band where a good rating counts for even more: his trend has been negative (-1) since the start of the season, with his last price move in matchday 4. He is Napoli's most expensive midfielder, ahead of De Bruyne (17), Politano (12) and Anguissa (10): anyone keeping him in their squad while waiting for his return still has the designated starter of Napoli's midfield, and a possible absence from the first minute against Frosinone does not change the outlook for the matches after that.

It remains to be seen from the matchday-eve team news whether Allegri will already include him in the squad list for Saturday or wait one more round: no source, for now, treats a call-up as certain.