Sports

Newcastle Must Cash In On Sandro Tonali After 0% Stinker, Talks Held

Published

5 months ago

February 8, 2026

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Newcastle United crashed to a home defeat against Brentford in the Premier League on Saturday evening, as their chances of Champions League qualification took another major hit.

The Magpies took the lead through Sven Botman in the first half but were behind at half-time thanks to goals from Vitaly Janelt and an Igor Thiago penalty. Bruno Guimaraes equalised late in the second half with a penalty of his own, before Dango Ouattara netted a winner with just five minutes remaining, leaving Newcastle 12th in the table with 13 games remaining.

While the whole team struggled to perform to the standard expected, there was one star who struggled in particular, and it comes at a time where his future is under major question heading towards the summer.

Newcastle Must Cash In on Sandro Tonali

Last summer’s transfer window was dominated by talk surrounding the future of Alexander Isak, and while Newcastle tried to stand firm and refuse to sell, they eventually allowed the Swede to join Liverpool, which affected their preparation for this campaign.

They now face a similar situation with Italy star Sandro Tonali, who was linked with a deadline day move to Arsenal, and whose agent has suddenly found a public voice where he is consistently mentioning a potential summer transfer.

Isak’s season ended slowly, with the striker not finding the net as often as questions over his future were raised, and it now seems that the same may be about to happen with Tonali. Against Brentford, the 25-year-old failed to win any of his aerial duels, won just won tackle, didn’t complete any of his four cross attempts, and was only accurate with 67% of his long pass attempts, according to Sofascore.

Newcastle will be desperate to avoid a repeat of the Isak situation in the summer, and it’s best that the club start to accept that they will likely be without Tonali next season, so they can focus their efforts on replacing him and getting the best out of him for the remainder of his time at St James’ Park.

Arsenal Ready to Move for Tonali

Sandro Tonali applauding the Newcastle United supporters

Tonali has a long-term contract with the Toon, and they will be able to demand a huge fee as a result of that, but letting him leave at this stage will actually be in the best interests of everyone involved.

Letting him know he will be allowed to leave for the right fee now will ensure that Tonali continues to perform to a high level, which also ensures the club get his full value. It also means the player doesn’t go on strike, and Newcastle can plan for his exit properly with months to spare.

If his performance against Brentford was a sign of things to come, then Newcastle need to make the decision to cash in sooner rather than later, or they could feel a sense of deja vu come the summer window.

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Sports

Henry Winter: Kane Saved England, But Problems Remain

Published

3 minutes ago

July 2, 2026

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Henry Winter joins Market Madness to react to England’s nervy 2-1 comeback win over DR Congo, Harry Kane’s rescue act and Thomas Tuchel’s biggest issues before Mexico.

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The Premier League’s New Money Rules | Kieran Maguire

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Kieran Maguire joins Market Madness to explain UEFA’s squad cost rule, why Aston Villa were hit hardest, and how PSR is changing the Premier League transfer market.

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Messi and Balogun’s Red Card Incidents Analysed By Ex-Ref

Published

47 minutes ago

July 2, 2026

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Former FIFA referee Mark Halsey has made an interesting comparison between Lionel Messi‘s foul against Algeria and Folarin Balogun’s red-card offence in the United States win over Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Balogun opened the scoring in the USA’s 2-0 win over Bosnia in the Round of 32 at the World Cup on Wednesday night. The former Arsenal striker then received his marching orders for a foul on Bosnian defender Tarik Muharemovic.

The pair battled for the ball, and Balogun’s studs made contact with Muharemovic’s calf. Brazilian referee Raphael Claus initially missed the incident before VAR intervened and sent him to the pitchside monitor, and he subsequently brandished a red card.

Messi’s Challenge Worse Than Balogun – Ex-FIFA Ref

There has been widespread debate over Balogun’s sending off and USA boss Mauricio Pochettino hit out at the decision after the game. He said, It’s ‘never a red card’ because there was ‘never any intention to step on the player.”

Pochettino also weighed in on the comparisons between Balogun’s sending off and Messi’s foul in Argentina’s 3-0 win over Algeria, which didn’t lead to a red card: “For me, neither are red cards.”

Messi didn’t even receive a yellow card for a foul on Algerian defender Aissa Mandi in Argentina’s group stage win. The 2022 World Cup winner scored a hat-trick in that game, but some argue he deserved the same punishment as Balogun, given the similarities between the two incidents.

Halsey defended the decision to send Balogun off because the replays show his studs make contact, even if accidentally. He did, however, opine that Messi’s challenge on Mandi was “far worse” while speaking to The Sun Football on X:

“If we go back to Argentina vs Algeria, a challenge by Messi. That challenge by Messi on Mandi, he had no chance of playing the ball; it’s a poor challenge. He rakes his studs down the back of the Algerian player’s calf.”

He added: “For me, that was far worse than the one we saw with Balogun, which VAR should have recommended a review because it was a clear and obvious error by the match official.”

Balogun will now miss the USA’s Round of 16 clash with Belgium on Tuesday (July 7th) through suspension. He may even have his ban extended if FIFA’s disciplinary panel believe the challenge on Muharemovic warrants more than the one-match ban.

Corruption? – Fans Question FIFA

Lionel Messi (Argentina) vs Algeria at World Cup

Fans were quick to recall Messi’s challenge in the aftermath of Balogun’s red card, and some feel the Argentina captain had been handed preferential treatment. A side-by-side replay of both incidents shows significant similarities, raising questions about FIFA officiating and inconsistencies.

Some viewers agree with Halsey and feel Messi’s challenge looked even worse than that of the American frontman, who had been enjoying a superb campaign. One fan wrote on X: “Messi went unpunished for his. He didn’t even get a yellow card. Balogun did even less than Messi and still got a red card.”

British broadcaster Piers Morgan made his feelings known on social media, posting images of the two fouls. He captioned it: “Same tackle. One (Balogun) gets a red card. The other gets no punishment at all. Must be nice being Lionel Messi.”

Some fans have gone as far as to suggest “corruption” and “favouritism” shown towards Messi. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner will be in action for the reigning world champions when they face Cape Verde in the Round of 32 on Friday night.