The Napoli star given a Diego Maradona nickname, who honours Cristiano Ronaldo on the pitch

That's what supporters of the Serie A club have done to Khvicha Kvaratskhelia after the 21-year-old's brilliant start to life in Italy.

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"Obviously I like the nickname," Kvaratskhelia said. "I can't come close to Maradona, but I will give everything to become a big player for this club."

Luciano Spalletti's Napoli have been the surprise packages this season as they top Serie A and remain unbeaten.

They have also won all five of their Champions League group stage games, smashing Liverpool 4-1 at home, and need just a point to guarantee top spot.

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They must travel to Anfield to do so, but they are a danger to any side in European football right now.

Leading the way for them is Kvaratskhelia, who has undoubtedly been one of the bargain buys of the summer.

The Georgia international was playing with Rubin Kazan at the start of the year before Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

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FIFA allowed foreign players to cancel their contracts with Russian clubs and he subsequently joined Georgian side Dinamo Batumi.

After firing in eight goals in 11 games, Napoli picked him up for a mere £10million.

'Kvaradona' has gone on to become a key player for the club, scoring six goals and adding five assists in just 12 Serie A games.

In four Champions League appearances, he has two goals and three assists.

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Spalletti is the coach who oversaw Mohamed Salah's development at Roma and it looks like Kvaratskhelia may be on a similar track.

Those at the top of the game have been watching him for some time and current Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti said Napoli were already tracking him when he was there.

He said: "Napoli have signed excellent players, refreshing the air. It's difficult to predict today what they can do, certainly the newcomers have made the team unpredictable.

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"Is Kvaratskhelia a surprise? For those who didn't know him, we were already following him when I was at Napoli. He is a special player."

Some have also called him the 'Georgian Messi', but the player he grew up idolising was Cristiano Ronaldo.

That's why he wears the number 77 shirt, as the 7 was already taken by someone else.

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Attention is already turning to who Kvaratskhelia could join next, especially after his impressive Champions League performances.

"He was fantastic," Carragher said on CBS Sports. "We gave him a big build-up before the Liverpool game, to do what he did in a game of that magnitude.

"He has maybe been the best player in Serie A, certainly this season and he has proved it again. He looks like a hot talent and it will be interesting to see how long he will stay at Napoli."

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Both Liverpool and Man City have been linked with a possible move for him, with City of course previously having a famous Georgian in Georgi Kinkladze.

However, his father Badri played down rumours of an imminent move to the Premier League.

He told Imedi TV: "He's not focused on Premier League links or a new contract, at all - and no one told us of new deal negotiations."

The 21-year-old is one of the hottest talents around right now and it won't be long until many more top European clubs start seriously consider transfer bids.