McTominay has blossomed in the more attacking role handed to him by head coach Antonio Conte.

“At Napoli, I’ve grown both from a tactical point of view and a physical one,” he added. “Tactically, Italy is different from the Premier League. I had to adapt and learn very quickly how to play, what movements to make… how to become a problem in the opponent’s area and also how to defend.

“Antonio is a great coach, very strong, passionate, he knows football very well. He is different from anyone else I have had in the past.”

He also pointed to Napoli’s lengthy injury list as a factor in why they have slipped further behind the leaders in recent weeks but is not giving up on the title just yet.

Should he miss out on Sunday, it will increase the chances of 24-year-old Gilmour making only his seventh start in 14 appearances this season as he looks for game time and to add to his own 43 caps at this summer’s World Cup.

With only three wins in 11 outings, nine of them in Serie A, Napoli cannot afford any more slip-ups if they are to retain the Scudetto.

Indeed, with Inter visiting Lecce less than 24 hours earlier, the Scots’ side could find themselves further behind before facing a tough test against the side that finished third in the standings last season.

Hosts Atalanta were beaten 2-0 away to Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of their Champions League knockout round play-off on Tuesday and lost November’s reverse fixture 3-1 in Napoli.

Sunday’s opponents also won 3-2 on their last visit in January, with McTominay scoring one of the goals.

However, Raffaele Palladino’s seventh-placed side have won three in a row domestically, are unbeaten in eight in Serie A since losing at home to leaders Inter at the end of December, and are only eight points adrift of Napoli.