Sandro Tonali 'gentleman's agreement' resurfaces as Man United circle
Sandro Tonali has been a player whose Newcastle United future has been in the headlines far more often than we'd have liked this year.
We're still not fully convinced that there's any truth to any rumours that Tonali will leave Newcastle in the summer, but journalists seem determined to make a story out of him.
To be fair, journalists have been emboldened by the talk from Tonali's agent, Bepe Riso, who has done very little to quash rumours when they have arisen. If anything, he's poured petrol all over the flames.
Sandro Tonali hasn't publicly indicated he wants to leave Newcastle, but he has openly spoken about his ambitions and said how he can never promise to be at a club for a set length of time because football changes too quickly.
The 'gentleman's agreement' may be real
In March, it was reported that Sandro Tonali had a 'gentleman's agreement' with Newcastle that if they fail to qualify for Europe this season, he'd be allowed to leave if a top club comes in for him.
Now, Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio has mentioned the agreement in a piece that suggests that Manchester United will still pursue Sandro Tonali despite reports that the Red Devils are poised to sign long-term Newcastle target Ederson from Atalanta for around £50million.
Man United need to replace Casemiro, who is leaving the club at the end of the season, and Tonali's name has often been mentioned as one that's on Man United's shortlist, along with Bruno Guimaraes.
Manchester United didn't want Tonali a couple of days ago
It seems like it depends on which way the wind is blowing as to how Man United feels about Tonali lately. Just last week, interest was cooling on the Italian.
In fairness, that came from The Athletic, whom we certainly trust much more than an Italian journalist when it comes to matters about Tonali.
We're not at all convinced that Manchester United will fork out £100 million on Tonali in the summer, especially not if they're picking up Ederson for around half that.
