Tuesday night is a big one in the career of Sandro Tonali.
Expected to play for Newcastle United despite remaining on the bench during Saturday’s win over Brentford, Tonali is set for a reunion.
Indeed, Eddie Howe’s side will meet the Italian’s former club AC Milan in the Champions League.
Upon his departure in July, Tonali vowed to see the Rossoneri again. Quite whether or not he could ever have imagined it would be so quickly is doubtful.
Tonali was a hugely popular figure in Milan, so much so that there was speculation he didn’t want to leave for Newcastle in the first place.
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Now, he has spoken.
Sandro Tonali shares how he really felt when Newcastle had a bid accepted
Tonali was speaking at Newcastle’s pre-match press conference on Monday night, delayed due to adverse weather conditions in Milan.
Naturally, he was asked all manner of questions by the Italian media and was asked to explain how he felt when Newcastle had an offer accepted.
“I remember the transfer happened while the Under 21 Euros were on. Everything happened so quick. I was overwhelmed because I was playing for Italy,” he replied (via the Evening Standard).
“I have found a wonderful team and a wonderful staff. They are ready to welcome anyone and I realised that Newcastle people love what they do. In these two months I’ve seen the whole team working non-stop, 24/7 at the training ground.”
You can forgive Tonali for feeling overwhelmed
Leaving for a new team in a new league in a new country cannot be an easy thing to process.
Just because Tonali seemingly wasn’t pushing to leave Milan does not mean he necessarily hated the idea of joining Newcastle.
It cannot be an easy move but the early signs are promising.
While the new-look midfield hasn’t been firing on all cylinders, there was enough in his debut against Aston Villa to suggest the 23-year-old can be a success.
A big performance on Tuesday would certainly help on that front.