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The Newcastle football club just announced a £52m signing of one Sandro Tonali from AC Milan. His own agent, Giuseppe Riso, admits that Tonali is a "gambling addict".
'Sandro is playing an important game against gambling addiction - he will win this one too,' he said of this 23-year-old client.
'I'd like to thank Newcastle who have always stood by Sandro. He is in shock, shaken and sad. I hope that this experience saves his life and that of many others, that it helps those who fall into the same habit as him.
Riso added: 'Sandro is training, and on Saturday he could also play. He understood that he has to face this problem in a strong, determined way. The club is absolutely at this moment by his side.'
The admission comes in the wake of a massive gambling probe that is currently rocking Italian football.
Aston Villa's Nicolo Zaniolo is also being investigated by authorities, according to reports.
Another 38 players are believed to be wrapped up in the scandal with Tonali and Zaniolo's names the first to be released.
Fast Fact: It may not be that more professional and college athletes are gambling than ever before but instead could be a result of improved monitoring that so many of these cases are now coming to light. There are advanced analytic programs that can instantly detect even the slightest variation from the norm, both in the aggregate and the individual per Yahoo News.
Juventus midfielder Nicolo Fagioli is also implicated. He is said to be cooperating with prosecutors and was also handed down a 7 month ban.
Tonali was at the Federal Prosecutor's Office in Italy as this was going to press.
“I want to thank Newcastle again for how they’re supporting Sandro”, his agent Giuseppe Riso added.
Both Tonali and Zaniolo were released from the Italy squad last Thursday after they were questioned by authorities. Their phones were also seized.
The extent of the investigation remains unclear at this time.
Tonali made his Newcastle debut on 18 July. On 12 August, he scored the opening goal on his Premier League debut in a 5–1 win over Aston Villa.
- Alistair Prescott, Gambling911.com
