Sandro Tonali in Turin to face prosecutors in betting scandal, lengthy ban still a possibility

The betting scandal that has swirled up around Newcastle United's Sandro Tonali continues as Nicolo Fagioli hit with a ban.

Newcastle United's £52million summer signing has already had a difficult start to life on Tyneside, but now, after being sent home from the Italy camp, the midfielder is embroiled in a betting scandal that has rocked Italian football.

The whole thing came to light after Juventus star Nicolo Fagioli handed himself into the Italian authorities for using an illegal betting app where he immediately named Sandro Tonali and Aston Villa's Nicolo Zaniolo in the case too.

Tonali and Zaniolo were in Italy at the time with the national squad and both were sent home after authorities came in to question the duo.

Since then reports have suggested everything from no action to a three-year ban for Tonali with the latest from The Daily Mail suggesting that Tonali arrived in Turin on Tuesday to give his account of events to the prosecutor's office.

Tonali has denied betting on football which, if true, would see him avoid a worldwide ban, but if found guilty he faces a minimum three-year ban, however that could be reduced by 50% if he cooperates with the authorities.

For his part, Nicolo Fagioli has today received a seven-month ban. It's thought his suspension has been reduced due to his cooperation in the case

As things stand nobody outside of those involved is 100% sure what charges Tonali is facing and as such is still free to play for Newcastle while the investigation is ongoing, although with how hard it has hit him and with him feeling distraught after admitting gambling addiction, he may not be in the best frame of mind to play right now.

Also, as Craig Hope said on X, the fact that he's out in Italy right now could make it all the more difficult for him to be ready to face Crystal Palace on Saturday.

The whole thing is a huge mess and with nobody sure what's going on it's probably best to sit back and let it all play out rather than speculate.