Sandro Tonali returned to the Newcastle United starting eleven in the Champions League match against Barcelona.
However ten minutes into the second half, he midfielder doing well to win the ball in the penalty area and as he did so he was clearly fouled by the Barcelona player who kicked the opponent and not the ball.
It kind of summed up the night, as Sandro Tonali had to be replaced by Joe Willock AND Barcelona scored from the corner, a corner that should never have been given as it was a clear free-kick to Newcastle United for the foul on Tonali.
Asked about the Sandro Tonali situation and whether he would be fit for Sunderland on Sunday, Eddie Howe said after the match: “I think he felt something in and around his groin area, so that could be a problem for us. I would say he is a doubt [for the Sunderland match]. I thought he performed really well in the first half and we really missed him in that second period.”
The Sandro Tonali situation made plenty of headlines in Italy as well. Next Thursday (26 March), Italy have their World Cup play-off semi-final against Northern Ireland, then if getting through that, they will face Wales or Bosnia-Herzegovina for a place at the 2026 World Cup finals.
Sandro Tonali had an MRI scan scheduled earlier today to determine the extent of the injury and now updates have appeared both in Italy and England, of what the scan results have shown.
Italian journalist Gianluca di Marzio has said that his information is that the medical tests have pointed to no major issue, that there is no structural damage. With Italy confident that the midfielder will be ok for their World Cup play-off matches next week.
Gabriele Gravina, the president of the Italian Football Federation, backed this up.
Gravina said that after speaking on the phone to Sandro Tonali himself: “Today’s tests have provided reassurance. There’s reason for optimism.”
The updates from Italy appear to correspond with those closer to home.
Craig Hope from The Mail saying that the information he has, is that the injury is not serious.
Hope saying that he understand Sandro Tonali has a chance of potentially still facing Sunderland, that the club should know more by Friday. He also adds that there are no plans for Tonali to withdraw from Italy’s squad for their World Cup play-off matches.