Scott McTominay has revealed he had to receive treatment for an irregular heartbeat before Scotland's opening game at the World Cup in June.

McTominay recently returned to action with Napoli, after being diagnosed with a "mild benign arrhythmia" and undergoing a minor procedure to correct the condition.

The former Manchester United midfielder subsequently missed the first four games of Scotland's Nations League Group B1 campaign, from which they took four points.

He could feature under the Tartan Army's new head coach Sebastien Pocognoli for the first time this month, having returned to the squad for their games against North Macedonia and Switzerland. 

And ahead of Friday's meeting with North Macedonia at Hampden Park, McTominay has revealed his heart condition began affecting him five months ago.

"I had to go and get the shock on my heart. It was two days before the Haiti game," McTominay – who then played the full 90 minutes as Scotland started their World Cup campaign with a 1-0 win – said. 

"You've prepared so well. I was in such a good condition and then something like that happened. You're thinking, 'how is this happening to me?'

"You have to get on with it; those are the cards that you're dealt in football. Sometimes, things don't go your way.

"I was 100%, and obviously, when you're sat in a hospital bed two days before the first game of the World Cup, about to get put to sleep, it's not ideal, is it?"

Sébastien Pocognoli has named his Scotland squad for this month's UEFA Nations League matches   Read more here: https://t.co/It41YRRly9  Get your tickets for the home match versus North Macedonia now: https://t.co/ay7oj2U05X https://t.co/4M9xLdlD50

— Scotland National Team (@ScotlandNT) November 3, 2026

McTominay was one of four players to play every minute for Scotland at the World Cup, though he failed to score or assist at the tournament, only creating one chance and hitting the target with three of his eight shots.

He has scored five goals for Napoli since his return to action, with three coming in the Champions League and the other two being a brace in a thrilling 3-3 draw with Roma.

And he now feels back to something approaching his best, saying: "I'm feeling much, much better than I was. 

"It was something that needed to be done. In your career, you have moments like that where things can take you by surprise.

"Obviously, it looks a lot worse to people in the media, and family and friends reach out to you after they see news related to a heart issue, but it's a relatively straightforward procedure, which went really, really well in Manchester.

"So, I'm just really happy to be back and playing football again. That's the most important thing in my life and it always will be."

Scotland have lost their last two home matches, both of which have come in the Nations League. 

They have not lost three in a row on their own turf since September 2018, while in competitive games they have never previously lost three straight home fixtures.