Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis hailed Scott McTominay's impact and personality, both on and off the field, ahead of the Partenopei's match against Parma at the Stadio Ennio Tardini.
McTominay, who joined from Manchester United in 2024, has become a key figure under Antonio Conte, starting 24 of Napoli's 31 Serie A matches this season.
The Scotland midfielder was also named Serie A Footballer of the Year for 2025 and has picked up seven goals and three assists in the league this term.
And De Laurentiis was not shy about his feelings, waxing lyrical about McTominay's impact on the club.
"Scott is a real Scottish man. He's like an actor. Very elegant, very serious," De Laurentiis said.
"He's a friend. He's a good boy. There's some people you don't have an exchange with. But with him, you can always have an exchange.
"He's a fantastic guy. He's done a lot in the last two years. He has a big personality. He could be an actor!"
Napoli head into the clash on a five-match winning run after picking up a 1-0 victory over AC Milan, placing them seven points behind leaders Inter with seven games left to play.
Parma, meanwhile, secured a 1-1 draw with Lazio last time out to move up to 13th place.
Carlos Cuesta's side held Napoli to a goalless draw at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in their most recent meeting last season, and will be hoping to replicate that result again on Sunday.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Parma – Adrian Bernabe
In the last two Serie A seasons (since 2024/25), Parma have averaged 1.2 points per game with Adrian Bernabe on the pitch, winning 25% of their matches (12 of 48) and conceding 1.2 goals per game.
Without the Spaniard, Parma's average points per game drops to 0.7, with a 15% win rate (three of 20) and 2.0 goals conceded per game.
True 𝐆𝐑𝐈𝐓 pic.twitter.com/DAX57cTZuC
— Parma Calcio 1913 (@ParmaCalcio_en) April 8, 2026
Napoli – Matteo Politano
Matteo Politano has been involved in four goals in his last four Serie A appearances for Napoli (two goals and two assists) – as many goal involvements as he registered in his previous 28 matches in the competition.
Should he find the net against Parma, he could score in consecutive league matches for the first time in two years (since April 2024). But, Politano has only managed one goal in eight top-flight matches against Parma (in January 2021).
MATCH PREDICTION: NAPOLI WIN
Conte's side arrive as favourites for this clash, though their recent record against Parma does not offer much encouragement.
Napoli and Parma have drawn their last two Serie A matches (both goalless), and could record three consecutive draws between them for the first time in Serie A history.
The last six league matches between these two sides at the Tardini have been perfectly balanced, with two wins for each side and two draws. This follows a period where Napoli had dominated, securing four victories and one draw in their previous five top-flight visits to Parma.
Furthermore, Parma have frequently had to settle for a point this season as only Pisa (12) have drawn more Serie A matches than them this season (11, level with Atalanta, Fiorentina and Lazio).
The Crociati also lost their last Serie A match at the Tardini against Cremonese and have only registered consecutive home defeats in the current league campaign once before: between November and December against Udinese and Lazio.
Napoli, meanwhile, arrive with plenty of confidence having won their last five league matches. They have only achieved a longer winning run under Conte once before, winning seven straight between December 2024 and January 2025.
The Partenopei have also kept a clean sheet in their last two matches and could record three consecutive clean sheets for the first time in the 2025/26 Serie A season.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Parma – 18.5%
Draw – 24%
Napoli – 57.5%