Newcastle expect Sandro Tonali to leave this summer, with Manchester United interested and the club said to be ready to deal if the price is right. The Italian midfielder has not been given away, but he has been put into the market in a way that would have looked unlikely only months ago.
That is why Tonali is being searched now: Newcastle are asking €115 million for the former AC Milan midfielder, and his agent has already been offering him around clubs in the Premier League and across Europe. For a player who arrived with huge expectations and remains one of the most recognisable names in the squad, any move would be one of the summer’s biggest stories at St James’ Park.
There is also a broader shift behind the headline. Luke Edwards reported that Newcastle’s transfer policy has changed under sporting director Ross Wilson, who was appointed in October, and the club are now more willing to let major players go if the terms suit them. An unnamed source put that bluntly: clubs sell players, and Newcastle will too, as long as the deal is beneficial. That is a different tone from last summer, when the Alexander Isak situation exposed how badly the club had handled the timing of a sale, and when Anthony Gordon’s £70m exit to Barcelona showed they would not fight indefinitely to keep a player who wanted out.
The Tonali picture is complicated further by Manchester City. They are interested only if they fail to land Elliot Anderson, with Fabrizio Romano saying on Monday that City are preparing a new official bid to Nottingham Forest and remain confident after leading the race since March. Romano also said Manchester United are still keen, but City are ahead and optimistic. If City get Anderson, one of Tonali’s other possible landing spots effectively disappears, which leaves United as the club most closely tied to a serious move.
That is where the friction sits: Newcastle may be preparing to sell, but there is still no sign that Manchester United will actually meet the valuation. TuttoMercatoWeb has claimed United have already been offered a huge deal for Tonali, yet the asking price remains €115 million, a figure that turns interest into a test of ambition. Newcastle fans, meanwhile, have been warned to brace for another big-name departure even as the club edge closer to a £24m deal for Reims goalkeeper Ewen Jaouen, the 20-year-old who has not played in France’s top division.
For now, the most likely outcome is not a quick sale but a long negotiation. Newcastle appear willing to listen, United are circling, and Tonali’s future may depend less on whether he wants to go than on whether any club is ready to pay the number Newcastle have set.
