City enter race for Italian midfielder
Manchester City are preparing to make a substantial bid for Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali, according to reports in Spain, potentially scuppering Tottenham's hopes of landing the Italian.
Marca claims City are ready to push beyond €110 million for the 26-year-old, which would make Tonali the most expensive Italian player in history. The current record belongs to Mateo Retegui, who joined Al Qadsiah from Atalanta for €68m last summer.
Tottenham had appeared to be in pole position. TEAMtalk report that Spurs are willing to meet Newcastle's asking price, which has now risen to £116m — the same figure Manchester City are paying Nottingham Forest for Elliot Anderson. Tonali is said to be keen on working under fellow Italian Roberto De Zerbi and has already agreed personal terms with the north London club.
But City's interest complicates matters. With Bernardo Silva and John Stones having left this summer, reinforcements in midfield were always likely. Enzo Maresca's side are entering a new era, and Tonali — one of the Premier League's better midfielders and an Italy international — would fit the bill.
No other outlet has yet confirmed City's pursuit, so a degree of caution is warranted. But given the sums already being thrown around this window — the Anderson deal alone is £116m — a bid of €110m would not feel out of place.
Paul Scholes, for what it's worth, thinks Manchester United should be in the mix too. The former United midfielder told a podcast that Tonali is a "top-class midfield player" and that the club need to do "some business if they want to be successful next year." Whether United actually enter the bidding remains to be seen.
For now, the picture is this: Tottenham have the player's agreement but face competition from a City side that rarely misses out on its primary targets when the chequebook comes out.