Sandro Tonali reportedly wants to ‘return to his beloved Milan’ as Eddie Howe ‘cannot satisfy his ambitions’ at Newcastle amid ‘murmurs of fatal downsizing’.
Tonali missed the majority of his debut season at St. James’ Park after being handed a ten-month ban for breaching betting regulations and has been used sparingly by Howe this term.
He’s started six of the 13 Premier League games he’s been available for and has failed to score in any of his 15 appearances this season, contributing just two assists.
The 24-year-old’s only goal since he opened the scoring in a stunning personal and collective display in the 5-1 win over Aston Villa on the opening day of last season has come for his country.
READ MORE: Sandro Tonali far from ‘perfect’ on second debut as Newcastle better off without him
Tonali has become a key cog in Luciano Spalletti’s Italy team, starting all of their Nations League clashes and scoring the only goal of the game against Belgium.
Gazzetta dello Sport suggest his ‘prime role’ for his national team has increased his desire for more game time at club level.
It’s claimed Newcastle ‘saddens him’ and he now wants ‘to return to his beloved Milan’, with the Serie A giants ‘enthusiastic at the idea of having him back at the centre of operations’ having sold him to Newcastle for £55m in the summer of 2023.
The report adds that Howe ‘considers his contribution to the team insufficient’ and conversely the Magpies boss ‘cannot satisfy his ambitions’.
As Tonali angles for the exit ‘even the fans begin to murmur that they see a fatal downsizing of the goals in the Saudi property’.
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Speaking earlier this year, Tonali opened up about his difficult debut season in England.
He said: “Last year was a very hard, but very productive journey. I will always carry with me the memory of the year I spent off the field because it is right not to forget it.
“I think when a player trains all week without his ultimate goal, which is the game, he finds a sense of emptiness within himself.
“It wasn’t easy to be away from home for the first year without playing an official game, but just trying to maintain fitness. That was the challenge I had to take as seriously as possible.”
Howe shut down reports of the midfielder’s possible January exit earlier in the season.
“That one is news to me. It is not something I am contemplating. I am trying to build Sandro into the team after his ban,” Howe said. “He has performed really well the last few games. I have been really pleased with how he is finding his feet in the team.
“He is building new relationships. It is not just the player coming into the team it is also the players around Sandro and how those relationships start to form. I have been pleased how they have.”