Newcastle United crashed to a home defeat against Brentford in the Premier League on Saturday evening, as their chances of Champions League qualification took another major hit.
The Magpies took the lead through Sven Botman in the first half but were behind at half-time thanks to goals from Vitaly Janelt and an Igor Thiago penalty. Bruno Guimaraes equalised late in the second half with a penalty of his own, before Dango Ouattara netted a winner with just five minutes remaining, leaving Newcastle 12th in the table with 13 games remaining.
While the whole team struggled to perform to the standard expected, there was one star who struggled in particular, and it comes at a time where his future is under major question heading towards the summer.
Newcastle Must Cash In on Sandro Tonali
sandro tonali
Last summer's transfer window was dominated by talk surrounding the future of Alexander Isak, and while Newcastle tried to stand firm and refuse to sell, they eventually allowed the Swede to join Liverpool, which affected their preparation for this campaign.
They now face a similar situation with Italy star Sandro Tonali, who was linked with a deadline day move to Arsenal, and whose agent has suddenly found a public voice where he is consistently mentioning a potential summer transfer.
Isak's season ended slowly, with the striker not finding the net as often as questions over his future were raised, and it now seems that the same may be about to happen with Tonali. Against Brentford, the 25-year-old failed to win any of his aerial duels, won just won tackle, didn't complete any of his four cross attempts, and was only accurate with 67% of his long pass attempts, according to Sofascore.
Newcastle will be desperate to avoid a repeat of the Isak situation in the summer, and it's best that the club start to accept that they will likely be without Tonali next season, so they can focus their efforts on replacing him and getting the best out of him for the remainder of his time at St James' Park.
Arsenal Ready to Move for Tonali
Sandro Tonali applauding the Newcastle United supporters
Tonali has a long-term contract with the Toon, and they will be able to demand a huge fee as a result of that, but letting him leave at this stage will actually be in the best interests of everyone involved.
Letting him know he will be allowed to leave for the right fee now will ensure that Tonali continues to perform to a high level, which also ensures the club get his full value. It also means the player doesn't go on strike, and Newcastle can plan for his exit properly with months to spare.
If his performance against Brentford was a sign of things to come, then Newcastle need to make the decision to cash in sooner rather than later, or they could feel a sense of deja vu come the summer window.
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