Newcastle put transfer plans on hold as Sandro Tonali faces ’10-month’ ban
Newcastle prepare for Borussia Dortmund Champions League tie
Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe has refused to be drawn on whether the club will look to replace Sandro Tonali in the January transfer window if the midfielder is banned for breaching betting regulations in Italy. The 23-year-old only signed from AC Milan in a £60million transfer in July, but the club are already facing the possibility of a short-term replacement after admitting to betting offences during his time with the Serie A club.
The Italian is awaiting the verdict of the Italian authorities after consulting with prosecutors over the length of his ban. The maximum punishment for such an offence could see the Italy international banned for more than three years, although Nicolo Faglioli’s seven-month ban suggests Tonali is set for 10-month suspension from the game, according to Sky Sports.
Eddie Howe will have the Italian available for the Champions League clash with Borussia Dortmund, even if his ban is announced on Wednesday, as it will only become active the day after. And in the event that Tonali is banned for a year or more, Howe says the club will come up with a transfer plan to help them cope with his absence.
“We will have time to prepare a strategy for that moment but it’s not yet,” he told reporters at a news conference. “I know there are a lot of rumours going around but until we hear for definite, January and all that will entail has to wait.”
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Tonali was given a rousing reception from the Newcastle supporters after coming off the bench in their 4-0 success over Crystal Palace and the midfielder looked emotional at the final whistle. But the uncertainty over his future has caused Newcastle to reassess their position in the winter transfer market.
As far as his team-mate Sean Longstaff is concerned, though, Newcastle have enough quality in depth to deal with Tonali’s absence and singled out the impending return of Joe Willock as an example of the talent Newcastle have at their disposal.
“I’m confident we can cope,” he said. “We don’t know the outcome yet but we’ve got Joe Willock coming back, Joelinton fit again and Elliot Anderson has stepped up massively. And then we’ve got the little superstar Lewis Miley coming through, who I absolutely love.
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“The big one is Willock coming back. I could talk all day about how good he is and even watching him in training this week, it doesn’t look like he’s missed a minute. I’m really excited to have him back.”
Longstaff, who has thrived under Howe this season, has conceded he was worried for his future at St James’ Park after they signed Tonali from Milan. The 26-year-old added: “We used to talk about how good he is then he walks through the door! I’m not sure how much of a good thing it is for me!
“It’s been a privilege to be around him, watch him and what he does. Sandro fitted in our group is amazing. There’s stuff going around and people asking if he is happy to be here which is weird from within the group because we see how happy he is, laughing and joking with everyone.”
Newcastle are unbeaten in their Champions League group and claimed a memorable 4-1 win over PSG last time out to put them top of the group, with Dortmund the next team to visit the Toon cauldron.
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