Newcastle’s forgotten man provides timely reminder of what they’ve been missing

It was Sandro Tonali’s first touch of a ball in competitive football for 10 months, or 308 days, or 41 Newcastle matches. He had sat out the end of their first Champions League campaign in two decades; the whole of Italy’s Euro 2024. Whatever the measure, it was an achingly long absence.

And if there was a sense Tonali was determined to make up for lost time after a betting ban derailed his career and denied him almost a year of football, he touched the ball and, perhaps a couple of seconds later and 18 into the game, Newcastle were ahead.

In a tie decided by the last touch, by Sean Longstaff’s winning penalty in the shootout, Newcastle’s fastest ever League Cup goal may yet lead to something that has eluded them since 1969, in silverware. Tonali’s comeback was in the Carabao Cup and Newcastle progressed on penalties: with Joelinton missing, without Nick Pope saving but because Nottingham Forest squandered their advantage in the shootout. Ibrahim Sangare hit the bar. Taiwo Awoniyi went hither still, ballooning his spot kick. The 2023 finalists advanced.

There was a step forward, too, in the sight of Tonali back in the pitch and the outstanding player before the break. That first touch was an illustration of intent and ability. There were times when he sat on the sidelines, unable to play, when Newcastle’s statement signing looked a waste of £55m. His return revealed a rare class. That first touch was to find Miguel Almiron, who sent Alexander Isak clear. His shot was parried, Joe Willock following up to finish. The perfect return would have involved Forest’s giant goalkeeper Carlos Miguel pushing the ball out to the on-rushing Tonali, rather than Willock. Or, when Isak, showing signs of an understanding with the Italian, released him in the third minute, Tonali scoring rather than being denied by the debutant Miguel.

Yet an hour of Tonali, before he was removed, with a wave of the hand to the travelling fans, offered ample evidence why Newcastle signed him, why Howe said he fell in love with him when watching him play for AC Milan. There is a crispness and a slickness to his passing. He belongs in a different class to the local yeoman, Longstaff, who often plays on the right of Newcastle’s central trio. He is a midfielder whose instinct is to pass forward, lending his distribution incision, and run forward. That third-minute shot came from a burst into the penalty area. He is a box-to-box midfielder; the hairstyle may provide reminders of Andrea Pirlo, a predecessor at San Siro, but his running power is more reminiscent of Gennaro Gattuso. He looked fit from the off.

It was a reminder of the heady days when he was nicknamed Sandro “Toonali”. He made an immediate impact at the start of his Newcastle career, scoring six minutes into his debut against Aston Villa. A hugely impressive bow then came to look a false dawn. He came to define Newcastle’s season, but not with his excellence on the pitch. A return could have been a false start, too, when Forest led on penalties.

If Tonali is seeking to make amends, Newcastle, knocked out of this competition on spot kicks last season, went one better. Forest could rue a missed opportunity, and not merely the chances Awoniyi missed during the match. Nuno Espirito Santo picked a team that contained five debutants and a sixth – Jota Silva – making his first start. They began like strangers. Yet a newcomer brought a brightness to suggest he will become a favourite here. Dan Burn hooked Jota Silva’s header off his line after Nick Pope missed a cross. A first Forest goal followed later, rifled in off the underside of the bar after Newcastle failed to clear Alex Moreno’s long throw. The £5.9m Portuguese winger was effervescent, but surprisingly substituted.

Meanwhile, for Newcastle, Willock struck but soon went off injured, the scorer looking distraught; a midfield injury crisis was a theme when Tonali was ineligible. Newcastle lost him. They lost their way in the middle of the match. Sharp and dangerous on the break at the start, they finished far the stronger, the goalmouth action all at Forest’s end.

Howe had substitutes with plenty of pedigree, in Bruno Guimaraes and Anthony Gordon. Miguel, who capped an impressive debut with a shootout save from Joelinton, made a terrific stop from Hall in the 89th minute.

And so it went to penalties, Tonali in a line of Newcastle players and staff by the side of the pitch. After 10 months as a spectator, he had to watch on again. But Longstaff, who came on for him in Nottingham and stood in for him last season, sent Newcastle through and this, for Tonali, proved a happy return.