Newcastle United are believed to be “fuming” at the way Sandro Tonali has engineered a move away from St James’ Park this summer.
The 26-year-old is closing in on a move to Tottenham after a deal worth a total of £100million including add-ons was reached between the two clubs this week.
Speculation about the Italy international’s future began in January, when his agent floated the idea of a sale, and it quickly became “impossible” for the north-east outfit to keep him.
Former Man United chief scout Mick Brown told Football Insider that Newcastle will be unhappy with the player’s conduct and how keen he was to make a move away.
Tonali’s head was initially believed to have been turned by interest from the likes of Arsenal, Man City and Man United, but a move to Spurs has rasied further concerns.
Like Newcastle, Tottenham missed out on European qualification last time out, leading to questions about their sudden big spending and how they can attract these players.
Why are Newcastle unhappy with Sandro Tonali?
SportForge revealed last month that Newcastle were surprised to learn that Tonali had indicated his willingness to join Tottenham after their approach.
It has quickly became clear he had his sights set on a move away, in what is seen as a blow to the club who stuck with him during his lengthy ban and betting scandal.
The club felt they were owed some loyalty by the player given their public backing and support of him, but his decision to force through an exit has left a sour taste.
“Newcastle have every right to be fuming with Tonali and how he has handled this,” Brown told SportForge.
“He’s played a big part in pushing for the move away, it’s been no secret that he’s been looking at different clubs and his agent has held talks to engineer a move away.
“From Newcastle’s perspective, that’s not what they would have hoped from a player who they stuck by when that betting scandal came about, when they backed him and supported him.
“Now a couple of years later he’s pushing for a move away after one bad season where they didn’t qualify for Europe, to join Tottenham who are in the same situation.
“So from Newcastle’s point of view, they feel they were owed a bit of loyalty, but the player obviously doesn’t feel the same.
“It’s a harsh reality in football, players are always going to want to move to bigger clubs, so the interest in a move to Arsenal or Man City was what seemed to turn his head.
“Whether joining Tottenham will be the right decision for him, we’ll see, but Newcastle will now be forced to find a replacement for a player they didn’t want to lose.”
Could Newcastle face more transfer nightmares?
Amid the growing frustration about Tonali’s departure and the potential fall-out surrounding it, Newcastle are fearful more star players could be on their way out.
Having failed to qualify for any European competition, some of their more ambitious players are believed to be eyeing moves away, with Tonali and Anthony Gordon the first to go.
Now, Brown has warned Football Insider that Bruno Guimaraes could push to leave Newcastle, with his agent assessing his options after holding talks with Arsenal.
The Gunners are believed to have been given encouragement that the 28-year-old would be willing to make the move to the Emirates if a deal could be agreed.
Newcastle are extremely reluctant to lose their star player and have already dismissed an initial £55million offer, but could find themselves in a difficult situation.
