Tijjani Reijnders of AC Milan
Tijjani Reijnders of AC Milan (Image: Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images)
Manchester City have agreed a £46.3m deal with AC Milan to sign midfielder Tijjani Reijnders. The Dutch international is set to complete a medical and sign a five-year deal with the Blues to kickstart their summer spending.
Reijnders, joined AC Milan from AZ Alkmaar in 2023 and impressed enough in an underperforming team last season to be named as the best midfielder in Serie A. He earned praise from coach Sergio Conceicao, who said in March: "Reinders can play in any position, he is a world-class player and provides the team with multiple solutions in midfield."
City are happy with a deal that will see the fee go up depending on various performance-related clauses inserted into the contract. Reijnders will add quality and energy to a midfielder that was too often overrun last season.
The player should make his debut for his new side in the Club World Cup, fulfilling the ambition of chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak to have as much of next season's squad in position by the time the Blues start their summer tournament. Pep Guardiola and the players will fly to the United States next week, with their first game on June 18.
They take on Wydad Casablance, Al Ain and Juventus in the group stage and Al Mubarak is looking for the team to go deep in the competition to put the disappointment of last season behind them.
Reijnders will be part of a busy few weeks of deals that sporting directors Txiki Begiristain and Hugo Viana look to conclude.
The club are looking to sign another midfielder, with Rayan Cherki and Morgan Gibbs-White of interest, as well as at least one full-back with talks ongoing to sign Wolves left-back Rayan Ait-Nouri.
City have also been monitoring goalkeepers with doubts over the futures of Ederson and Stefan Ortega, although Guardiola appeared to indicate this week that both would be staying with the club.
"We have spoken about the squad situation and the two goalkeepers that we have will continue," he said.
--
Here at The Manchester Evening News, we're dedicated to bringing you the best Manchester City coverage and analysis.
Make sure you don't miss out on the latest City news by joining our free WhatsApp group. You can get the club's breaking news and best analysis sent straight to your phone by clicking here to subscribe.
You can also subscribe to our free newsletter service. Click here to be sent all the day's biggest stories.
And, finally, if you'd rather listen to our expert analysis then make sure to check out our Talking City podcast. Our shows are available on all podcast platforms, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and you can also watch along on YouTube.