Newcastle United rallied behind Sandro Tonali as he faced a 10-month ban soon after his £55millilion arrival.
Amanda Staveley is “proud” of Sandro Tonali and never had any doubts about backing him during his Newcastle United suspension.
Tonali endured a turbulent start at Tyneside when he was given a 10-month ban by Italian authorities for betting offences. Newcastle had stumped up a seismic £55million for the midfielder, who made just 12 appearances before being slapped with the setback.
A frustrating season out coincided with the Magpies suffering an unprecedented injury spell. Eddie Howe’s men narrowly missed out on European football in 2023-24 but came roaring back the following year.
Sandro Tonali’s importance
Doubts were raised about whether Tonali could return as the same player. However, those fears soon disappeared, with the 25-year-old starring once given a deeper midfield role.
His emotional return against Nottingham Forest proved the catalyst for his Newcastle comeback - ending the season as one of the Premier League’s best midfielders. Tonali helped the Magpies secure a Champions League return and the club’s first domestic trophy for 70 years.
Amanda Staveley on Sandro Tonali
Speaking to the High Performance Podcast, former Toon co-owner Staveley opened up about how Newcastle rallied behind Tonali in his time of need. She said: “I wanted to make sure that we provided him (Eddie Howe) with the support network so the players could ring me up if they had any issues.
“I think that's what Eddie liked. That became really important when we had an issue when we got Sandro in. He was facing a huge issue. He'd been, like Alexander Isak, on top of our list for ages. We just thought we were never going to be able to afford him. But he's got such a talent.
“When we got him in and he had the issue, we wanted to give him as much support and say ‘Addiction, we understand very well’. We thought he must be terrified (after) coming to a new club. The way he dealt with this issue was such humility. He worked so hard to deal with all his demons and overcome all of those demons.
“We knew he'd become the most incredible midfielder. Now, also, we knew that he was at the right club because we knew the Newcastle fans would be so protective of him. I said to him, ‘This is going to be the best thing that happens for your career. You're going to get a year out where you're going to be able to train with the best guy (Howe) in the world’.
Read More
Kieran Trippier helped support Sandro Tonali
Staveley also named Kieran Trippier as the dressing-room figure who helped Tonali through his gambling ordeal the most. She added: “Very early on, we made sure and wanted him to know how supportive we are.
“There was a lot of (outside) support, but there was a lot of people saying ‘You picked the wrong player’. He’s the right player - and we knew the chemistry he would have with Joelinton and Bruno (Guimaraes).
“Kieran (Trippier) was brilliant. The first thing I did was speak to Kieran, who I think the world of, (and said) ‘Can you talk to him?’ That's why we wanted Kieran to come in as captain because he would just be such a support in the dressing room. He got so much support from his colleagues, and from us, and I was just so proud of him.”
Continue Reading