Tonali sends message to Pickford after wonder save: ‘One of the best shots of my life’

Sandro Tonali says that England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford made ‘the best save I’ve seen against me’ with his last-minute stop during Everton’s recent 3-2 victory over Newcastle in the Premier League .

Tonali sat down for an in-depth interview with Sky Sport Italia , discussing his current form with Newcastle, his toughest opponents in the Premier League so far and his ambitions with the Italy national team.

“We’ve had a few ups and downs this year,” Tonali admitted after 28 games of the 2025-26 Premier League season, which sees Newcastle sitting in 13th place in the league table.

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NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 28: Sandro Tonali of Newcastle United during the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Everton at St James’ Park on February 28, 2026 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. (Photo by George Wood/Getty Images)

“In February we started getting a few away wins and a couple in a row. Things started changing with the Champions League as well. So yes, things are going a bit better: I think getting through to the next round gave us some more confidence.”

Newcastle recently slipped to a 3-2 defeat at home against Everton in the Premier League , a game which saw Tonali denied a last-minute wonderstrike after a phenomenal save from opposition goalkeeper Pickford.

– Sunday, 1 March 2026

Tonali says that Pickford’s save was so good that he had to immediately congratulate him after the game, and says that the volley might have been ‘one of the best shots of my life’.

“It was amazing. It annoys me a little, but in the end, when a player does something amazing, you have to tell them,” said Tonali.

“I congratulated him straight away after the game. He did something that you rarely see. I might have taken one of the best shots of my life, it was definitely the best save that I’ve seen against me.”

During his interview with Sky, Tonali also discussed the toughest opponents he has come up against since joining Newcastle in the Premier League .

“The great thing here is that there’s a player who impresses you in every game. That’s a real plus in the Premier League . Every team you play against, even if you don’t know all the players, you discover that they have their own quality. You can’t underestimate everyone.

“When you play against the big teams and you find yourself facing a player like Haaland or like De Bruyne last year, they’re players who can change the game in a minute. You admire them and also understand how difficult it is to play against them.”

Fellow Premier League-based Italy international Riccardo Calafiori recently said that players tend to see each other much less outside the training ground in England compared to Italy.

Tonali agrees: “We always organise a Christmas dinner. But in general, it’s more private outside the training ground.

“After a while you get used to it, because you understand that’s how it works here. We also had another occasion with Newcastle, which was after the Carabao Cup, but we’d just won the trophy so that was a bit different. Without those sorts of exceptional moments, it’s normal to not spend much time together.”