Newcastle could reportedly look to the Saudi Pro League in their efforts to replace Sandro Tonali, who has been handed a ten-month ban for betting on football matches. The 23-year-old admitted placing bets while playing for Brescia and AC Milan following an investigation by Italian prosecutors and will not be eligible to play again until August.
Tonali joined Newcastle over the summer and was expected to play a major role for the Magpies, who are widely expected to try and sign a replacement in January. It seems as though Eddie Howe could push to raid the Saudi Pro League for the services of Ruben Neves, with the Portuguese midfielder having recently joined Al-Hilal from Wolves.
He is on Newcastle’s list of potential January targets, according to The Sun, with a loan move said to be under consideration at St James’ Park. Both clubs are owned by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, which could help to smooth over negotiations at the turn of the year.
Neves established himself as a Wolves legend during his time at Molineux and is already proven in the Premier League, making him an attractive proposition for Newcastle. He has started in all but one of Al-Hilal’s league games so far this season after signing a lucrative three-year contract with the club back in June.
It remains to be seen whether Newcastle’s owners will be able to pull some strings behind the scenes in order to help the Magpies out by landing Neves to replace Tonali this season. The latter most recently came off the bench against Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday night as Newcastle fell to a narrow defeat in the Champions League group stages.
Tonali will complete a gambling rehabilitation programme alongside his ban from playing, which will see him miss out on next year’s Euros if Italy manage to qualify for the tournament. Newcastle boss Howe said earlier this week that he would continue to support Tonali, who is said to be ‘absolutely devastated’ as a result of the situation.
“I see the person, I see the human, I see the pain and distress,” said Howe. “That’s why my thoughts are always with the player and making sure we look after him. Sandro loves the game and is absolutely devastated.
“His thoughts are with us and our thoughts are with him. Hopefully between us we can make it work. The most important thing is Sandro and his welfare. It’s very easy for people to forget how young he is, the changes he’s had in his life coming from Italy to England. Footballers are human beings.”
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