27 October 2023 , 09:13
503
0
Sandro Tonali has a "high chance" of playing against Wolves on Saturday - despite his 10-month ban.
The Italian Football Federation slapped a season-long ban on the Newcastle midfielder in an official announcement on Thursday, with the player set to miss Euro 2024 if Italy qualify. But they have yet to ratify their own ban, which will be worldwide.
The process of extending it to the Premier League and UEFA could take days or weeks. As of 10am on Friday morning, Newcastle had not been handed the judgement, and neither the Italian FA nor UEFA or FIFA had written to the club informing them of the ban.
That leaves Tonali free to play, and Eddie Howe began training on Friday with the midfielder part of his injury-hit squads plans. Howe said: "Yes there is a high chance he could be available. There are a few things that have to happen before the ban is imposed."
But Howe added: "It is difficult. We have not had confirmation as a club. We heard the news and statement but not had anything from the Italian authorities and we are in limbo waiting for confirmation.
Chelsea complete record-breaking Enzo Fernandez transfer after deadline day rush
"He came on and did well against Dortmund. He was bright and he trained well. His mood is the same. He is good around the group and training ground. I’m sure when he goes home there are difficult times for him but he is handling it well.
"We had no idea this was a possibility. There is frustration and disappointment that we won’t have a quality player for a period of time. There is always scope to improve the education we deliver for our young players. All pitfalls have been there for years and the better we get good guidance to them to avoid them.
Eddie Howe is hoping to play Tonali on Saturday (Getty Images)What's your thoughts on Sandro Tonali's ban? Let us know in the comments below!
"If he is banned for that time he is going to have difficult moments in that time frame. Attention on is initially then a period when it is training wherever he trains and not for a game. The communication between us will be important.
"Ten months is a long time for a professional athlete not to do what he does. Especially on the scale of the pitch. In training you can get used to small sided games."
Newcastle could do with Tonali being available. Elliott Anderson is out for eight weeks with a "bizarre" back injury. Jacob Murphy sees a specialist today to see if he needs an op on his dislocated shoulder. Alex Isak is out for the next five games with a groin problem.
Howe added: "We need a squad robust enough to deal with these things. It is part of football that you never know what football will bring."