When Eddie Howe started explaining how he had fallen head over heels in love, everyone in the room knew he really meant it. Newcastle’s manager is a stranger to hyperbole, does not really do anecdotes and rarely reveals anything personal so this had to be something exceptional.
It was last August and Howe was discussing his new £53m signing, Sandro Tonali. “I went to watch AC Milan play and I fell in love with Sandro,” he enthused. “I was delighted, surprised and excited we we were able to sign him. He’s an outstanding talent.”
A little earlier that afternoon the Italy midfielder had made a brilliant, almost gladiatorial, Premier League debut, volleying a sublime opening goal and dictating play, as Newcastle swept Aston Villa aside 5-1 at St James’ Park.
The home supporters’ choruses of “Sandro Tonali, drinks Moretti, eats spaghetti” had barely faded and died before Tyneside’s new hero further endeared himself to his new public by dining out at a Wetherspoon pub in suburban Gosforth. It is not the sort of venue that typically hosts multimillionaire footballers but, whether or not the then 23-year-old was tricked into the visit by prank-pulling teammates, Tonali and his Milanese fashion designer girlfriend, Juliette Pastore, took a Wetherspoon in their elegant stride. After the couple posed for selfies aplenty with an excited and delighted staff and clientele, everyone agreed on one thing: Sandro was “a good lad”.
Little did everyone realise that a zenith had been reached. Subsequent matches featured Tonali suffering a significant loss of form, prompting fears he was homesick for San Siro and his beloved Milan. The reality proved infinitely more complicated. Tonali was a gambling addict whose secret was about to be exposed.
On Wednesday night by the banks of the Trent the playmaker with a pronounced Andrea Pirlo aesthetic is expected to play his first game for 10 months as Newcastle visit Nottingham Forest in the Carabao Cup. As those once familiar strains of “drinks Moretti, eats spaghetti” rain down from the away end, there will doubtless be a moment to reflect on the long hard yards of a very personal redemption road.
After admitting his gambling addiction last October, Tonali received a 10-month worldwide suspension imposed for breaches of betting rules and had his £120,000 weekly wage at Newcastle pruned significantly.
“I think Sandro will be in a position to start games straight away,” said Howe. “Physically he’s very fit, he just needs match sharpness. He’ll be ready to play but he won’t be in his best condition for a month or so.”
Although Tonali had not been able to play in friendlies involving registered match officials, he did participate in a behind-closed-doors game against Burnley recently with coaching staff refereeing.
Early last October he was on international duty in Italy when it emerged that police from Turin investigating an illegal betting ring had raided the squad’s base at Coverciano before departing with Tonali in the backseat of one of their vehicles. A “stunned” Howe heard the news via a phone call from Dan Ashworth, Newcastle’s then sporting director. “It was a massive shock,” Ashworth would later reflect. “It came out of nowhere.”
Tonali swiftly admitted to placing bets on Milan matches during his time at the Serie A club. Under Italian football federation and Fifa regulations he faced a three-year suspension but openness about his betting problems and full cooperation with civil and football authorities prompted a measure of leniency.
Over the past 10 months Tonali, who subsequently received a two-month suspended ban from England’s Football Association, has progressed from having very few words of English to impressive fluency.
In between regular trips to Milan for addiction counselling the former Italy Under-21 captain has trained virtually full-time with Newcastle, where largely sympathetic executives understand the game’s vexed, yet symbiotic, relationship with gambling.
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In their free time Tonali and Pastore have explored the north-east’s coast and countryside. Along the way there has been time for chats and selfies with locals, and the midfielder has appeared at community events organised by his club’s charity foundation.
“He’s a very cool customer,” said Howe. “He’s not outwardly emotional. You don’t see that big ‘I’m back’ grin. He’s contained emotionally and very strong; he’s similar to me in that he doesn’t show his emotions. I’m sure he had some hard days but I haven’t seen evidence of that. I do know he’s been a great teammate. I’m really looking forward to watching him play again. I’m absolutely excited.”
Much has evidently changed in the 11 months since Giuseppe Riso, Tonali’s agent, acknowledged his client faced “the biggest challenge” of a hitherto gilded career. “Sandro is shocked,” said Riso. “He knows he has made a mistake. I hope this experience will help save his life and also the life of others with the same addictions.”
Given that gambling is banned in Saudi Arabia and haram (forbidden) in Islam, Newcastle’s majority Saudi Arabian ownership doubtless appreciated the hypocrisy involved in the club having commercial partnerships with three online betting companies. Should Tonali be introduced as a substitute when Howe’s side host Tottenham on Sunday he will almost certainly warm up against a flickering backdrop of electronic advertising hoardings regularly promoting gambling on loop rotation.
This dictates Howe can hardly complain when Tonali, as part of his punishment, makes the minimum of 16 midweek trips to Italy over the next eight months to warn footballers at all levels of gambling’s perils and to visit addiction clinics.
“I don’t think you conquer an addiction,” said Howe. “I think you live with it, so I don’t want to downplay the battle Sandro will have for the rest of his life.
“But he’s shown real mental strength. I think you’ll see a much better player from this. I think you’ll, eventually, see a much stronger person. I think in adversity you find more strength than you thought you had.”
