Sandro Tonali is a man not afraid of pushing his limits.
After AC Milan claimed their first Serie A title for 11 years last summer, the open-top bus parade was fuelled with la collera de la Curva Sud, where his father Giandomenico would regularly stand with his son.
Inter Milan, the defending league champions who had also won the Italian Cup, finished two points behind their rivals – and Stefano Pioli’s Milan players were not about to let a 19th Scudetto in the club’s history pass by with just a ripple of applause.
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Image: Tonali could be deployed in a defensive midfield role
It was a party with plenty of pizzazz as the bus wound itself through the world’s fashion capital like on a catwalk from Casa Milan to the Duomo, where thousands of fans gathered.
Tonali wore a shirt that bore a “greatly offensive, vulgar” message that insulted cross-city rivals Inter. There was a banner further mocking the Nerazzurri.
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The 23-year-old midfielder was fined €4,000 for his part in the antics, but it further endeared him to the Milan ultras. Having journeyed around Europe on Champions League nights as a boy with his father, he gets Milanismo.
Image: The 23-year-old represented Italy U21s at this summer's Euros
Upon disembarking, Tonali revealed he had updated a tattoo on the back of his right hand which read “impossible”. A red line now runs through the first two letters.
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Since the takeover by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund in October 2021, Newcastle have adopted the same attitude. For both player and club, everything now feels within reach.
Football has always been Tonali’s passion. Aged just eight years old, he was already making an hour-long drive from his small hometown Sant’Angelo Lodigiano in the Province of Lodi in Lombardy, about 20 miles from Milan. Two years later, the same journey from Piacenza became his commute and then from Brescia aged 11.
It was eventually here under owner Massimo Cellino where Tonali would truly find his wings, but it was not a straight pathway to stardom.
“One of my fortunes was having Cellino as president and I wish all young players find one like that,” Tonali said. “At 17, all footballers want to play and earn money. I found Cellino, who, against everyone, decided to send me back for six months in the Primavera [the youth league].
Image: Tonali arrived at Milan brimming with promise
“At first I thought it was a rejection, but he came to see me, to talk to me, I understood that he did it to protect me, so that I wouldn’t go down the path of so many who lose out of ambition. I still talk to Cellino often.”
The boyhood Rossoneri fan arrived at the San Siro three summers ago, initially on loan from Brescia before the switch was made permanent on a five-year contract.
He even took a pay-cut to facilitate the move, but this was also an acceptance that the temporary transfer was not a huge success. Where Barcelona, Manchester United and Inter Milan had all previously expressed interest, this was an acceptance he had to again prove his worth.
Image: Tonali's appearance has similarities to Andrea Pirlo
Tonali’s presence at this summer’s U21 European Championships as one of Italy’s three permitted over-age players was a sign of why Milan would welcome a sizeable fee for someone who has been touted as the ‘new Andrea Pirlo’ following four impressive years with Brescia.
His shaggy hair made for obvious comparisons which ultimately have not been helpful in managing expectations.
It was always a high bar to emulate the achievements of the Milan legend, but he has fallen short of fulfilling his own potential in what can be described as comfortable surroundings. The 2022/23 campaign did not go according to plan for Milan as their title defence collapsed.
The unexpected run to the Champions League semi-finals which saw Inter gain their revenge papered over the cracks. Consistency became a problem despite a top-four finish being snaffled.
Tonali’s dynamism flickered, however, as he recorded his highest number of assists – seven – in a league season since 2019/20 with Brescia.
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A high-profile move to Tyneside is one that was not expected as recently as last summer, as the flag-bearer of an ambitious new generation under Pioli. Fabio Cappello has said of the midfielder: “Tonali would have also played in the ‘Great Milan’. He has personality, strength and he’s smart.
“He is really strong defensively but also good in moving the ball forward. He has vision and moves the ball quickly.”
Roberto Mancini overlooked Tonali for his recent Nations League finals squad, a year out from Euro 2024. By making a big-money move to the Premier League, Tonali certainly will not be going under the radar of Italy’s head coach, but he must now re-establish himself as one of Europe’s outstanding midfielders.
Italian publication Corriere dello Sport claim he will earn €10m-a-season (£8.57m) at St James’ Park, more than tripling his current salary. The fee comes close to the €67m (£57.4m) recouped for Kaka, a Ballon d’Or winner, following his move to Real Madrid in 2009.
While Tonali’s imminent departure has shaken a fanbase already reeling from Paolo Maldini leaving as technical director and Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s retirement, Newcastle will hope to rediscover the midfield motor that was behind Milan’s first title since 2011.
Where will Tonali fit in at Newcastle?
Image: Tonali will hope to endear himself on Tyneside
Newcastle hope Tonali’s passion can now be replicated in black and white stripes. The fee agreed between the two clubs has been labelled a “shock figure” by Gazzetta dello Sport, and one Milan simply could not refuse.
Newcastle sent representatives to firm up their interest in the player who captained Italy’s U21s side at the European Championships in Georgia and Romania.
Eddie Howe is open to moving Bruno Guimaraes further up the pitch nowTonali, who has 14 senior caps for Italy, has arrived at St James’ Park. But he is not your conventional defensive midfielder. Do not expect to see him just sitting in front of the defence.
When Sean Longstaff was out injured, Newcastle suffered. Guimaraes was forced to play in a deeper role for large periods between January and May, when Howe only had four recognised midfielders to call upon.
It threatened to derail the side, with home defeats to Liverpool and Arsenal contributing to a record of one win in eight games against top-five rivals.
Tonali was used predominantly as a No 6 by Pioli last season in a 4-2-3-1 formation, which would give Guimaraes more licence to play higher up the pitch. Adept with both feet and tidy in possession, Tonali will improve Newcastle’s ball retention having been the 12th most-accurate passing team in the Premier League last term.
Tonali will sign contract until 2028 and the deal represents a record sale ever for an Italian player.
It is a statement signing, but still part of Howe’s meticulous plan to go through the phases as Newcastle look to establish themselves among European football’s elite.
Last summer, they were prising Sven Botman – wanted by Milan – to the north east. Now, they are attracting the man who was expected to become Milan’s club captain.
Tonali himself has admitted his childhood idol was in fact Gennaro Gattuso, who always liked to play on the edge.
With Pirlo’s grace and Gattuso’s granite, Newcastle can ensure their return to the Champions League after a 20-year hiatus is not a brief one.
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