£52m man spotted at St James’ Park as Newcastle United beat Arsenal 1-0 & FA investigate
Sandro Tonali was back at St James’ Park for the first time since his 10 month ban from playing was ratified as Newcastle United beat Arsenal 1-0.
Tonali’s 10 month ban for breaching Italian betting regulations came into effect ahead of the trip to Wolverhampton Wanderers last week with Newcastle’s first home match since the ban coming against Arsenal.
Despite not being allowed to play for The Magpies, Tonali has continued to train at the club and watched on from the stands as Anthony Gordon scored the only goal of the game to claim a 1-0 win against The Gunners.
Unlike injured players like Alexander Isak and Elliot Anderson, who visited the dressing room for a team photo following the win, Tonali was absent from the post-match celebrations.
The 23-year-old midfielder is set for a return to playing from August 27, 2024 but the English Football Association have since confirmed they are investigating the player for any potential betting offences following his £52million summer move from AC Milan.
The FA could not confirm whether this would lead to an extended ban for Tonali, with a further update expected in due course.
On Friday, Newcastle sporting director Dan Ashworth spoke to the media about Tonali’s ban from playing and the club’s next steps.
“It was a massive shock, a massive surprise,” Ashworth admitted. “Dealing with it was new to all of us. It came from nowhere.
“We first became aware of it when there was a potential allegation on social media. I spoke with his representatives and it just happened really quickly.
“The Italian federation went into Coverciano to speak to Sandro. Within the next 48 hours everything went quickly and there was a potential he could get charged.
“He is a top player and a big signing, we will miss him. To contextualise it, it could have been an ACL. These things happen in football, although not in this context.
“For me, from the minute it happened, you look at yourself. What could we have done better? What could I have done better? What lessons can be learned from this? Could we have known? Should we have known? You look at your processes.”