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Newcastle United are set to sign AC Milan midfielder Sandro Tonali in an initial £60million deal, according to reports. And the Italy international has received endorsement from a name that doesn't get any better for midfielders from his homeland - Andrea Pirlo.
Newcastle are set to sign Sandro Tonali. (Image: Getty)
And one name likely to be excited to see how Tonali fares in the Premier League is Pirlo, who has publicly lauded him in the past.
In May 2020, two months before he became Juventus manager, Pirlo boldly claimed that Tonali was the best player in Serie A.
It was an even bigger statement considering he played for Brescia at the time, and Cristiano Ronaldo had just scored 21 goals for Juventus in their title-winning campaign.
"He is very good, but he is different from me on the pitch," Pirlo told Gazzetta dello Sport.
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"He has everything to be a champion, but he is more a midfielder for a two-man midfield. He could already play for a great team; he is the best in this league."
Tonali signed for Milan on loan later that summer before joining permanently on a five-year deal in 2021.
Two years later, he looks set to join an increasingly exciting squad featuring Sven Botman, Bruno Guimaraes and Alexander Isak.
Newcastle had previously shown interest in another Italian top-flight star, Inter Milan's Nicolo Barella. But the Magpies have landed on Tonali ahead of a highly-anticipated season at St James' Park.
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