Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali is officially suspended for 10 months after being found guilty of breaching betting rules. The announcement came from the Italian FA came on Thursday (Oct 26) with the player now set to miss the rest of the season in the Premier League and Champions League. The ban also extends to international duties, which will also see him miss the Euro 2024, if Italy qualify for the tournament in Germany.

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Tonali faces 10 months out

FIGC (Italian FA) President Gabriele Gravina said Tonali will be suspended for 18 months but eight of those months are commutable by attending treatment for gambling addiction and making at least 16 public appearances at centres for young soccer players and associations for recovering addicts.

This will come as a huge blow to Newcastle United, having secured the signing of Tonali on a $70-million deal from AC Milan. He was involved over the weekend in the Premier League game against Crystal Palace and played 20 minutes. He also came on as a substitute in the Champions League encounter against Borussia Dortmund where his side lost 1-0.

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“We will throw our arms around Sandro and protect him and try to give him the love and support he needs to find solutions to the problems he’s had,” Newcastle manager Eddie Howe said last Friday.

“We see him being part of our team for many years. We are committed to him long term.”

The 10-month ban further includes eight months of commutable attending treatment for gambling. This would mean, the Italian international could return to action in time for the start of the 2024-25 season.

He is the second Italian player to be banned from football in a betting scandal that came to light during the recent international break. Juventus’ Nicolo Fagioli was suspended for seven months by the FIGC’s disciplinary tribunal earlier this month.

On Wednesday it was reported that the 23-year-old and his legal team were in negotiation over a compromise to minimise the length of the ban. Tonali is reported to have cooperated with the investigation which has seen his ban reduced. According to Italian betting rules, he would have faced a suspension of three years had he not cooperated with the investigation.

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