Following a challenging season where Manchester City had to fight until the last game week for Champions League football, new sporting director Hugo Viana acted swiftly to secure three players before the Club World Cup in the form of Rayan Cherki, Rayan Ait Nouri and Tijani Reijnders on top of the 180 million euros spent in January.
While all the spotlight has understandably been on Lyon playmaker extraordinaire Cherki, the signing of AC Milan’s Reijnders may be the one that makes it all tick for Guardiola.
Not many people knew of Dutch midfielder Reijnders during his six-year spell at Eredivisie side AZ Alkmaar, but that all changed when the midfielder secured a transfer to Serie A giants AC Milan in 2023 for 20.5 million euros. Following 128 appearances for AZ, Reijnders had gained valuable experience in the Eredivisie as well as European competitions, giving him a launchpad to strive in the Serie A.
Reijnders made 36 league appearances in his debut campaign for the Rossoneri, and while his start didn’t set the world on fire at first, the Dutchman slowly but surely began to show his qualities as a dynamic midfielder, with positive intent to make things happen going forward while also comfortable to help the team build out from deep.
The 26-year-old ranked in the 98th percentile this season among all midfielders in the world for total shots per match with 2.19, as well as three progressive carries, demonstrating his serious industry going forward from the number eight position.
Reijnders’ immense dribbling ability for a number eight, coupled with his keen eye for goal, saw the player register an impressive 15 goal involvements domestically this term, splendid contributions that later saw him recognised as Italy’s best midfielder.
Reijnders’s eye-catching form this term has seen him emerge on the radar of many clubs around Europe, and it was Pep Guardiola’s Man City who quickly swooped for 55 million euros. City’s fall off this season has largely been down to a lack of athleticism in midfield, not helped by the long-term injury absence of Ballon d’Or winner Rodri, and the signing of Reijnders is no doubt an effort to address that problem.
With Rodri back in the six position next season, Reijnders’ arrival not only injects much-needed athleticism into an aging City midfield in 2024/25, which consisted of Bernardo Silva, Ilkay Gundogan and Mateo Kovacic, but also helps to replace some of the attacking numbers that will be left vacant by club legend Kevin De Bruyne’s departure.
A player profile like Reijnders is shown to be effective in Guardiola’s possession-based system, as evident in the huge success Ilkay Gundogan has had over the years at the Etihad. In his prime, Gundogan was an all-around midfield asset for the Spanish manager, linking play all over the pitch and then showing up late in the box to score vital goals.
Now 35, Gundogan showed last season that he no longer has the legs to fulfil the same role consistently, warranting the recruitment of the adventurous Reijnders, who is stylistically similar to the German with his box-crashing runs and willingness to get on the ball.
Under Guardiola, Reijnders is poised to develop into a more rounded player in the ilk of Gundogan, as his defensive and distribution numbers are not of the elite. Reijnders only attempted a little over 44 passes per game this season for Milan, placing him in the 38th percentile of all midfielders, as well as a single tackle and interception per game.
While this could be seen as an issue, the return of Rodri will put less emphasis on Reijnders’ defensive responsibilities as a central midfielder, allowing the 26-year-old to grow into Guardiola’s demands and thrive at what he is already elite at, which is driving with the ball forward, creating chances and scoring goals.
55 million euros in the current market can arguably be labelled as a steal for the reigning Serie A midfielder of the season. The Dutchman will no doubt provide Pep Guardiola with another midfield weapon for years to come, taking the mantle from the potentially soon-to-depart Ilkay Gundogan, Bernardo Silva and even, to an extent, the deemed irreplaceable Kevin De Bruyne.
This signing may not take the spotlight for now, but soon it will be clear why the shrewd acquisition of Reijnders will allow Guardiola to return to his previously dominant offensive yet controlled, style of football.
