Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali is effectively contracted to the club until 2030 after it was revealed the midfielder signed an extension during his 10-month suspension for gambling offences.
Tonali joined Newcastle from AC Milan in July 2023 on a five-year contract, but saw his first season prematurely ended when his ban was handed down in October.
According to multiple reports, the Italy international then approached the club about taking a pay cut.
Newcastle accepted that proposal but also extended his contract by a year, while also adding an option extend it by a further year, with Tonali willing to add extra seasons to his deal in a show of appreciation for the faith displayed in him by the club during his ban.
It means Tonali is tied to Newcastle for the remainder of the decade. As such, a midfielder described as the best in the Premier League by Paul Scholes will be difficult to prise from the Magpies.
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Tonali a perfect fit in Newcastle midfield
Tonali, Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton have formed an extremely impressive midfield trident at St James’ Park, their performances in the Newcastle engine room critical to Eddie Howe’s men winning the EFL Cup last season and finishing fifth in the Premier League to secure Champions League qualification.
His first full season with Newcastle saw Tonali score six goals in all competitions and provide three assists as he flourished operating in the number six role for Howe.
This season, Tonali already has two assists to his name, though he was an unused substitute on Wednesday as Newcastle eased to a 3-0 win over Benfica in the Champions League, making it two wins from three in the league phase.
Tonali was rested following an illness, though will likely be back in the side on Saturday against Fulham as Newcastle aim to improve on a frustrating start to the Premier League season, last weekend’s 2-1 defeat at Brighton and Hove Albion having left them 14th with nine points from eight games.
A host of players shone in Tonali’s absence, with a pair of wingers taking the plaudits for firing Newcastle to a deserved victory.
Howe admits to “head scratcher”
Anthony Gordon’s fourth Champions League goal of the season and a pair of strikes from Harvey Barnes, who took his tally in the competition to three, secured the points for Newcastle.
Neither player has scored in the Premier League this season, leaving Howe to concede to confusion at the disparity in their impact in the different competitions.
“It’s a head scratcher,” Howe admitted. “We know their [Gordon and Barnes] qualities, we know they’re goalscorers. We know how good a player they are, and that goes for another good few players in our squad as well.
“Everyone’s pointing to the fact that we haven’t been scoring enough in the Premier League, but when you see us play like this, how we attacked and the number of chances we created, it’s a difficult one for us to work out.
“All we can do is return to the Premier League with the same attitude. If the attitude is there, the quality will show.
“I think it is that kind of game that sets a standard. That we have to take forward to our next few games that we’ve got coming up. That’s the level that we have to be at.
“I thought we’ve been threatening putting a performance like that together. Even at Brighton, there were some really positive moments, but that gets lost in the result.
“Today, we got both. We got another clean sheet and we scored some goals. Confidence returned to our attacking players, so it’s a great night for us.”
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