August 28 – Italian international midfielder Sandro Tonali is set to make his long-awaited return for Newcastle United tonight after a 10-month ban for breaching betting rules.
Tonali joined Newcastle from AC Milan last year but only played 12 games before he was handed a long suspension by the Italian football federation for betting on Milan and another Italian club, Brescia, when he played for those teams.
An independent regulatory commission also sanctioned Tonali with an extra two-month ban that was suspended until the end of this season.
The 10-month suspension ended late Tuesday, enabling Tonali to be available for Newcastle’s League Cup match at Nottingham Forest.
Manager Eddie Howe said Tonali would experience a range of emotions.
“Probably a lot of excitement – you feel like you are at the next stage of your career really,” Howe said. “When you have a long period of time out, (you have) a long time to think, analyse and reflect.
“I’m sure he’s done all of those things and now he’s doing what he loves, which is playing football and that will be an incredible release for him.”
“He’s fit, he just doesn’t have the match (fitness). But he’s done everything else, has completed all the training for a long period of time, he’s worked incredibly hard with the sports-science team to be on top of his fitness and make sure he’s fitter than when he got banned.”
Tonali’s agent, Giuseppe Riso, acknowledged around the time the midfielder’s ban was issued that his client had a gambling problem. Tonali agreed to a plea bargain with the Italian federation that included therapy for a gambling addiction.
Tonali became the most expensive Italian footballer at the time Newcastle bought him for €70 million and has played 15 times for his country.
Howe admitted the microscope will be on the player for some time.
“I think he understands that, we understand that. It’s small steps,” Howe said. “I think for us, we just expect him to be himself and play his game. I don’t know if debt is the right word but Sandro will naturally feel he wants to repay everyone here for the trust we’ve shown in him when we signed him.”
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