Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali has emerged as one of Manchester United’s midfield transfer targets and the chances of signing him could drastically improve
Sandro Tonali is considering leaving Newcastle United this summer to play Champions League football next season. The midfielder has been linked with Manchester United in recent days as the club plans to bolster its midfield.
United are understood to be prioritising a new central midfielder for the 2026/27 season after opting not to invest in the previous two windows. Elliot Anderson, Carlos Baleba and Adam Wharton have all been linked, but Tonali is the latest name on their radar.
The Telegraph has reported that the 25-year-old is expected to be at the heart of a transfer saga in the summer. United are already confirmed to lose one midfielder when Casemiro departs and are expected to spend big on his replacement.
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Newcastle paid £55million for Tonali in 2023 and with the likes of Enzo Fernandez, Moises Caicedo and Declan Rice moving more than £100m, the Magpies are in a comfortable place to negotiate a hard price.
On deadline day, some reports suggested that the Italian midfielder had been offered to Arsenal. The Gunners decided not to make a move, but that has cast doubt on his future on Tyneside.
According to Tonali’s agent, Giuseppe Riso, his exit out of Eddie Howe’s squad is a possibility at the end of the season. “Newcastle are having a hard time of letting go of Sandro, and he wants to lead the club to the Champions League,” he told Sky Italy.
“We’ll evaluate and decide what to do in the summer. These transfer discussions will take place later. We’ll see how the season ends and then we’ll decide what to do. There’s no preference at the moment.
“It’s still early. What we’re saying today won’t apply tomorrow. Newcastle couldn’t let him go now, and there’s no point in moving, especially since Sandro is very attached to the club.”
United’s chances of luring Tonali to Old Trafford will be significantly increased if Newcastle fails to turn their season around. Howe’s men are currently 12th in the Premier League table after inconsistency, meaning their best chance of returning to the competition may require them to win the tournament this term.
“I don’t think so, but lots of things happen without my knowledge,” Howe said when asked if the speculation around Tonali’s future would unsettle the midfielder. “As far as I’m aware, we’ve got player who is an outstanding footballer, an outstanding person.
“He’s very happy here, he’s got a great relationship with me, his teammates, and seems really happy within himself. That would surprise me [if Tonali became unsettled], but our best players will always attract glances from other clubs – that’s just the reality of football.
“We want to keep our group together, we want to be progressive and Sandro plays a part in that. All encompassed, I don’t see an issue but I don’t control everything. There was certainly no intention from our side to lose Sandro at all. He’s such an integral player to what we’re doing. He’s very happy here.
“He is absolutely fine. I had discussions with him yesterday [Monday] and he is absolutely focused on playing for us.”