Newcastle United’s Sporting Director, Dan Ashworth, has suggested that Newcastle United do not know how aware AC Milan were of the betting charges against Sandro Tonali.
Ashworth did not deny whether Newcastle believed that AC Milan had been aware before the sale of the Italian. He said: “It’s really difficult for me to get into what other clubs do or don’t know.”
23-year-old Tonali, born in Lodi, joined Newcastle for a fee believed to be in the region of around £55 million in the summer from the Serie A giants.
After an impressive start to the season with The Magpies, Tonali was questioned by police at the Italian national team’s headquarters of Coverciano, alongside Nicolo Zaniolo, who joined Aston Villa on loan from Galatasaray over the summer transfer window.
Tonali was handed a ten-month ban by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) a couple of weeks agi after admitting to illegal betting whilst with both AC Milan and first club, Brescia.
The central midfielder’s agent suggested that Tonali has a gambling addiction and is seeking treatment for that whilst he sits out his ban.
He began his youth career with Piacenza at the age of nine in 2009. After that he moved on to Brescia, where he spent five years before becoming a professional in 2017.
After three seasons with Brescia, where he made 89 appearances and scored six goals, he joined AC Milan on an initial loan deal in 2020 before that became permanent a year later.
At the Rossoneri, he made 130 appearances in three seasons and helped them win the 2022 Serie A title before reaching the 2023 UEFA Champions League final.
Whilst with Newcastle United, Tonali has scored one goal in 12 appearances across all competitions. Internationally, he has made 15 caps for the Azzurri, since making his debut in 2019.
