Newcastle’s Sandro Tonali on gambling addiction: “I closed off from everyone” | OneFootball

Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali has spoken about his gambling addiction problems that led to his ban from the sport and he has also revealed how he dealt with the problems.

The midfielder returned to action for Newcastle United this season and he has impressed for Eddie Howe’s side, operating in a deeper role for the Magpies. He can help the club finish inside the European places this season and he could play in the competitions for the first time since his move away from Milan.

He spoke to La Repubblica about his issues with gambling in the past and stated: “My lifestyle was negative. I was closed off from everyone and this made me change my behavior: even with the people who loved me and whom I loved. I was like that both at the training ground and at home, with friends and family. Today, fortunately, I am different.”

Tonali revealed that betting became a habit for him when he was quite young, saying: “It became a habit when I was 17-18. And normality when it started to take up a lot of my time. The fact that it was online obscured me from everything, I closed myself in my shell.”

He also stated that he never realised that he was addicted to gambling until things started falling apart.

“I actually think I never had it. When a person finds themselves in a situation like that, it’s difficult to ask them if they’re sick. They’ll always say no. Even if they feel that it’s not the case. They can’t think they have that problem, so they tend to hide it.”

He also revealed that he stopped using his mobile phone for a while after the addiction and detached himself from many people.

“In the first two months I was detached from everyone, then returning to life, training every day without having the match, I realised that I was paying for what I had done.”

Speaking about how the mobile phone can be a drug in itself, the midfielder said: “I haven’t had it for 6 months in the last year. Of course I felt a sense of freedom: the sensation of being okay even without it.”

Tonali has done well for Newcastle this season and he would look to keep his form going in an attempt to prove detractors wrong and get back to Europe.

Kaustubh Pandey I GIFN