Fabrizio Romano issues 23-word Sandro Tonali update after Newcastle United star makes Italy return claim
Fabrizio Romano has provided some insight into Sandro Tonali’s contract situation at Newcastle United.
Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali has once again been linked with a move away from the club.
Fresh reports from Italy during the international break linked Tonali with a return to Serie A. Tonali joined Newcastle from AC Milan in 2023 for £52million, a record transfer fee for an Italian player.
After a disappointing first season at Newcastle tarnished by a 10-month betting ban, Tonali has since established himself as one of the best midfielders in the Premier League.
In that time, he has been regularly linked with a return to Italy with Juventus credited with an interest in the player.
Tonali is one of Newcastle’s most valuable assets and would likely price out most, if not all, Italian clubs in the current transfer market.
But come the end of the season, the midfielder will have just two years left on his contract at St James’ Park. As such, it could be in Newcastle’s best interests to tie Tonali down to a new long-term deal.
The Magpies were burnt by backtracking on a potential new contract for Alexander Isak, who cited ‘broken promises’ as a reason for forcing through a summer move to Liverpool. Like Isak’s previously, Tonali’s Newcastle contract runs through to 2028.
Fabrizio Romano plays down new contract talks for Sandro Tonali at Newcastle United
Italian transfer expert Fabrizio Romano said via GiveMeSport that Newcastle are not in negotiations with Tonali over a new contract.
This comes after Tonali was spotted meeting with his agent Beppe Riso in Milan during the international break.
"At the moment, I’m not aware of negotiations over new deal,” Romano said. “Newcastle love Tonali, but at the moment it doesn’t involve new deal."
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Sandro Tonali leaves door open to Seire A return
To further fuel the speculation, Tonali refused to rule out a return to Italy when asked about his future.
"You can never know what will happen, I tell everyone it's possible,” Tonali told Vivo Azzurro.
"I'm not closing the door on Italy; it's my country. Maybe not now because I've found my balance at Newcastle, but the league is getting better and better, the level of the teams is rising."
After returning from suspension last season, Tonali played a key role in helping Newcastle end a 70-year domestic trophy drought before qualifying for the Champions League for the second time in three seasons.
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Eddie Howe on Sandro Tonali
Tonali has started the season well at Newcastle and talk of a new contract will gather momentum as the season progresses.
A new deal for the midfielder will be among Ross Wilson’s priorities as Newcastle’s new sporting director given how important he is in Eddie Howe’s side.
“I think he's done that superbly well,” Howe said about Tonali’s defensive awareness to cut out opposition attacks. “Sometimes it's not necessarily a quality that registers immediately, but the number of times that he reads the game, reads where the ball's going to drop, and he's there first, then you realise it's a massive skill of his. His athleticism, his speed.