Italian footballer banned for ten months for illegal betting

Italian midfielder Sandro Tonali, who plays for Newcastle United, has been banned for 10 months for his involvement in illegal betting on football matches, the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) said on Thursday.

Gabriele Gravina, FIFA president, explained that the 23-year-old player had been suspended for a total of 18 months, but that he would serve an effective sentence of 10 months, with the remaining eight to be served in therapy sessions at centers for young footballers and associations of recovering drug addicts.

“We can’t just think about punishing young people if we don’t help them get better,” Gravina said, adding: “I think eight months of lectures on honesty and good behavior is worth much more than a month of suspension. “

Tonali, who last summer became the most expensive Italian player ever when he moved from AC Milan to English club Newcastle for €64 million, became the second player to be sanctioned over illegal betting, after his compatriot Nicolo Fagioli was banned for seven years. months.

Sandro Tonali was suspended for a longer period than Fagioli due to the aggravating circumstance that he always bet on Brescia and Milan to win when he played for their teams, but he benefited from the fact that cooperated with the investigation.

The Italian midfielder, who has 15 caps to his name, will miss the rest of the season and, if Italy qualify, will not take part in Euro 2024.

On Wednesday, the Italian midfielder came on as a substitute in the Champions League match between Newcastle and Borussia Dortmund, which the English lost 1-0.

In addition to Tonali and Fagioli, Juventus player Italian Nicolo Zaniolo from Aston Villa is under investigation in the same case of online betting on unauthorized sites.

Newcastle manager Eddie Howe said last week that despite the investigation into the player that led to Thursday’s conviction, “the club is committed to Tonali for the long term.”