According to reports in England, Newcastle United are ready to ‘consider all legal options’ as Italy international Sandro Tonali faces a lengthy ban for illegal gambling.
The midfielder is under formal investigation and made a deposition to the public prosecutor in Turin yesterday afternoon, speaking to the investigators for almost three hours.
He is expected to receive a ban of at least 12 months from football, especially after confessing to placing bets on his own team Milan.
Now Mail Sport claim that Newcastle United will ‘consider all legal options’ around Tonali after paying €80m to sign him from Milan only a few months ago.
That could include terminating the contract or even taking legal action against Milan, if the Serie A side knew that Tonali had been gambling.
The Premier League side released a statement today assuring “he and his family will continue to receive the club’s full support.”
His agent and the FA have stated that although he is under investigation, Tonali can still play against Crystal Palace on Saturday.
It remains to be seen if the Magpies will choose to field him in the circumstances.
He was taken out of the squad for Italy’s EURO 2024 qualifiers against Malta and England to ‘protect’ him from undue pressure after police visited the Coverciano training ground to inform him and Nicolò Zaniolo that they were under investigation.