After almost 10 months in the shadows on Tyneside, Sandro Tonali had something to say in the Tokyo spotlight.
Tonali was on stage at a Newcastle United fan event, held at a wedding venue during the club’s pre-season visit to Japan.
There was a hush in the room when the midfielder took the microphone – and made a vow of his own.
Tonali, banned for breaches of betting rules while an AC Milan player, made it clear that this season was a fresh start for him.
The room erupted when last summer’s £52million signing finished his speech, and the reception clearly moved the 24-year-old Italy international, eligible to return to competitive football later this month.
Sandro Tonali (centre) is ready for a fresh start at Newcastle as he nears the end of his betting ban
The midfielder will be like a new signing, CEO Darren Eales said, as Newcastle prepare for the new season
‘He just spoke from the heart,’ said Darren Eales, Newcastle’s chief executive officer. ‘You got a sense of what Sandro Tonali is as a player.
‘I think he accepts that last year doesn’t almost count, that season, because of what happened. I think you can see just by the way he carries himself that he’s really focused for this season, and it’s a way for him to kick start his Newcastle United career.
‘We know he’s a fantastic player. He works his socks off in training, which is difficult when you’re not playing games.
‘It’s a cliche, but he’s going to be genuinely like a new signing, because this is his chance to launch his Newcastle United career. It’s exciting for him.’
Eales wants to bring more players of Tonali’s calibre to the club, which was unable to strengthen in January due to the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR).
To that end, the club, which has opened a new Stack fan zone at St James’ Park, must increase its commercial revenues, hence a post-season trip to Australia, a pre-season jaunt to Japan and a new kit deal with adidas.
‘In simplistic terms, the more revenue you bring, the more you can spend on the team,’ said Eales. ‘All of these things are incremental. So if you look back to last season, we did an end-of-season tour, and as things ended up, it’s a good job we did, because every penny helps in terms of PSR compliance.
‘But it’s beyond that, because for us, as a club, to get to where we need to get to, where we all want to get to, we have to be a club which is more global. We have to have that brand presence.’
Newcastle must increase its commercial revenues if they are to sign more players like Tonali
Tonali ‘accepts that last year almost doesn’t count’, Eales said of the £52million midfielder
The question is how quickly the club, looking to expand St James’ Park, can grow on and off the pitch.
‘I get that we all want to get from A to B as quickly as we can, but some things take time, and I think we’re starting to see the fruits of getting that structure in place,’ said Eales.
‘I’m not naive and know tomorrow the next shock could come, but that’s the beauty of working in football. You have the highs and lows. It’s a rollercoaster ride.
‘Disappointed we didn’t make Europe last year, but now you have to say ‘OK, what’s the positive of that?’. Eddie [Howe] has that week to week without European football, he’s got a real chance to set the team up. It gives us a real chance to attack the league, attack the domestic cups, and see how far we can get.’
To attack the Premier League and domestic cups, Newcastle head coach Eddie Howe needs more players, and newly-appointed sporting director Paul Mitchell is leading the club’s transfer efforts.
‘We’re always trying to improve each window,’ said Eales. ‘We’ve got Paul now in the building, and he and Eddie are talking daily.’
Fans want to see more big-name arrivals, but the ‘unglamorous’ deals done by the club, who have signed forward William Osula from Sheffield United for £10million plus up to £5million in add-ons, could be the most important, according to Eales.
Newcastle have added forward William Osula to their squad in a £15m deal from Championship Sheffield United
‘More and more now, I think it’s a bit like a salary cap,’ said Eales. ‘When you’re looking at a signing, you can’t look at it in isolation.
‘There’s only a finite amount you can spend. Every decision you make, from who’s the back-up left-back to the starting centre-forward, they all have a knock-on impact.
‘Every decision, you’ve got to try and be as efficient as possible. Some of the unglamorous signings are going to be some of the most important ones for us.’
However, the sooner Tonali, a glamorous signing if ever there was one, is back on the pitch, the better for Newcastle.
