Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali (Image: Owen Humphreys/PA)
Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali (Image: Owen Humphreys/PA)
EDDIE HOWE has played down fears of an injury setback to Sandro Tonali in the wake of last night’s 2-1 win over Manchester United – but the Magpies manager admits he might have to consider resting the midfielder for Saturday’s FA Cup tie with Manchester City.
Tonali went off in stoppage time last night, and appearing to walking awkwardly as he headed to the dugout at St James’ Park.
Howe is confident the Italian was only suffering from cramp, and does not expect him to have sustained any long-term damage from his exertions as Newcastle triumphed with ten men.
However, with the big games continuing to come thick and fast, Howe admits he might have to be careful with a player that has started all bar two of Newcastle’s 18 matches in all competitions since the turn of the year.
Manchester City visit Tyneside in the fifth round of the FA Cup on Saturday evening, with the Magpies hosting Barcelona in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie next Tuesday, and Howe accepts he will have to be careful with his selections, particularly in midfield, where Jacob Ramsey will be unavailable because of suspension at the weekend.
“I think it was just cramp with Sandro,” said the Newcastle boss. “But he’s a player who is playing every week, executing everything he can. We’ve got a lot of players who are maxed out. We’ve got to be careful and manage the squad.
“We’ve got so many big games to come, and we don’t have a deep squad. It’s going to be an interesting selection and decisions for the weekend.”
READ MORE:
Staggering moment Newcastle and their match-winner have been waiting for after Man Utd controversy
Player Ratings: The Newcastle player reaching levels 'beyond others' - and why Ramsey was wronged
The training-ground incident that swayed Eddie Howe in Newcastle's win over Man Utd
Ramsey was sent off in the closing stages of the first half when he was deemed to have dived as he tried to round Manchester United goalkeeper Senne Lammens.
The midfielder had already been booked for pulling back Casemiro, and referee Peter Bankes issued him with a second yellow card when he went down in the area.
However, while there was little or no contact from Lammens, Ramsey appeared to fall over as he tried to go round the goalkeeper rather than diving, and he did not appeal for a penalty after going to ground.
Bankes’ subsequent decision to send him off therefore felt harsh, with the official appearing to be swayed by the appeals of a group of Manchester United players led by Bruno Fernandes.
“I thought it was very iffy,” said Howe. “I don’t think Jacob has gone down to simulate or mislead the referee in any way. I think he’s maybe anticipating contact, it doesn’t come and he loses his footing.
“I think you’ve got to be really careful before changing the game in that way like the referee did. It ruined the game to a degree as a spectacle, although maybe not from our side at the end because we’ve got the result we wanted. But the game was very different, a lot slower. I thought it was a poor decision personally.”
From next season, VAR will be able to reassess red cards that are issued for a second booking, something that is currently not permissible, a change Howe welcomes.
“I think it’s a good move because it changes the game so much,” he said. “Negatively, in my opinion. When you see any numerical difference between teams, the game changes, poorly for my opinion.
“There’s less transitions and we couldn’t attack in the same way. So yes, I think that would be useful.”