Eddie Howe gives an unbiased assessment ofEddie Howe Sandro Tonali’s performance.
Newcastle United fans celebrated the return of Champions League football, and Sandro Tonali celebrated for quite different reasons.
Tonali was back at the club he formerly called home when Newcastle competed in the Champions League for the first time in 20 years.
The Magpies recruited the 23-year-old from AC Milan in the summer, and he returned to the San Siro to face his previous club.
He received a standing ovation from the home fans prior to the game, and the acclaim continued as he donned Newcastle’s black and white rather than Milan’s red and black.
Tonali received a standing ovation from the Italian supporters after being reinstated to Eddie Howe’s starting XI after sitting on the bench in the 1-0 win over Brentford.
Tonali played 72 minutes before being replaced by Elliot Anderson at the San Siro, and Howe has now revealed his assessment of the midfielder’s performance.
Eddie Howe says that Sandro Tonali should be’very pleased’ with his return to AC Milan.
Following the game, Howe addressed to the media at his news conference and was asked about Tonali’s performance.
“I thought Sandro did exceptionally well,” he remarked.
“It was clearly an emotional event for him.” Coming back here and how he would have felt before the game, I’m sure would have been unique for him. Nobody can quite describe how he would have felt coming into the game.
“He was part of a strong defensive performance in the first half.” He has every right to be delighted and proud. I think he did a good job representing himself, and I’m sure there’s more to come from him.”
More from the Newcastle midfielder to come
Tonali’s black-and-white performance was far from stellar. Even when Newcastle had long periods of control, he struggled to get on the ball at times.
Tonali had a couple of exhilarating bursts down the left when he showed off his box-to-box intensity, but it was a night where he was unable to have a significant effect.
According to Howe, he was part of a defensive performance in the first half that kept AC Milan at bay, and the Toon manager was pleased with what he saw from the summer purchase.
However, Howe is aware that Tonali’s best is yet to come, and he can now concentrate on kicking on in a Newcastle shirt without the distraction of playing against his former team – at least until they visit St James’ Park in December!
