Former AC Milan team-mate Zlatan Ibrahimovic believes Sandro Tonali is ‘ready for the Premier League’ as Newcastle United agree terms on a £60 million deal.
There were tears rolling down Sandro Tonali’s cheek as Zlatan Ibrahimovic took the microphone and announced his retirement from professional football at the end of the 2022/23 Serie A season.
The midfielder’s own San Siro departure is likely to be just as emotionally-charged.
Tonali, after all, is a paid-up member of the Rossoneri fanbase; his impending £60 million switch to Newcastle United seemingly more the result of Milan’s desire to cash in than his own desire for a new challenge.
Nonetheless, a move to one of Europe’s most ambitious, upwardly-mobile clubs is an ‘excellent’ opportunity for the 23-year-old playmaker. His agent confirming that Tonali will sign a long-term deal until the summer of 2029 at St James’ Park.
Sandro Tonali leaving AC Milan for Newcastle United
Ibrahimovic, meanwhile, is convinced that Tonali will succeed in bringing his pinpoint passing range and his industrious enthusiasm to English football, having taken the Italy international under his wing during Milan’s 2021/22 Scudetto-winning campaign.
“Is Tonali ready for the Premier League? Yes, I think so,” the legendary Ibrahimovic tells Gazzetta dello Sport. “It depends on him.
“I made him understand the right mentality he must have to win. And he won. He has grown a lot with Milan, he has a great responsibility and he still has to grow.
“But he will make it in England, and he will make it well.”
After a slow start to life at his boyhood club, Tonali played a massive role as Milan won Serie A for the first time in over a decade last term. His ten assists in 2022/23 also helped Stefano Pioli’s side reach the semi-finals of the Champions League, Tonali now showcasing his supreme set-piece delivery during the U21 European Championships in Romania and Georgia.
Newcastle are expected to confirm Tonali’s arrival imminently. The Magpies could then turn to fellow Milan star Theo Hernandez and Juventus winger Federico Chiesa.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
