REAL MADRID have joined Arsenal in the race for Sandro Tonali.
Scouts from the LaLiga giants are watching Toon’s FA Cup clash against Manchester City on Saturday night.
Madrid spies are there to plot to topple Pep Guardiola’s side ahead of their upcoming Champions League last-16 showdown against the Cityzens.
But SunSport understands Madrid staff have actually embarked on a double mission and with the 25-year-old Italian midfielder also high on their agenda.
And they are preparing to join City and Arsenal as Toon brace themselves for an expected £100m transfer tussle this summer over their midfield magician.
Newcastle sold Alexander Isak for a British record £130m to Liverpool last year and are determined not to lose another star.
Suggestions that Tonali has indicated he wants to stay next season are so far wide of the mark, though SunSport understands there has been no communication yet he wants to leave either.
His wife Juliette gave birth to baby boy Leonardo in January and his family are happy in the North East and are not actively looking for an exit.
The player’s agent Giuseppe Riso attempted to play down talk that his client was trying to engineer a move after deadline day links with Arsenal too.
However, Riso then muddied the waters by stating Tonali’s true value would be known in March – which indicated his asking price could increase if he helps Italy qualify for the World Cup via the play-offs.
BEST ONLINE CASINOS – TOP SITES IN THE UK
Newcastle will fight to keep Tonali, who is on a £150,000-a-week contract effectively until 2030, at St James’ Park but the club are aware awkward discussions could follow if they miss out on qualifying for European football.
And the potential lure of becoming a Galactico at the Bernabeu could be a hard one to resist for the ex-AC Milan ace.
It also seems unlikely that should a whopping offer arrive on the table and Tonali indicates an interest in pursuing it then they would embark on another summer-long saga like they did with striker Isak.
Tonali does enjoy a close relationship with Eddie Howe and remains grateful for the club’s backing during his ten-month betting ban shortly after his £55m arrival in 2023 from Milan.
But when asked directly by SunSport back in November about his long-term future, Tonali spoke honestly about the uncertainty of a footballer’s life.
He said: “This is a tough question because, you know [in] football you need to think year for year. The last summer was tough for us, for Alex [Isak], but this is football.
“If you have an option for your life, for another team you need to think about everything. I don’t want to say, ‘Yes, I want to stay here ten years,’ but now I’m happy here. I don’t think anything about another team.”
