Manchester City have had plenty of world-class players pass through the Etihad Stadium in recent years as they have dominated the Premier League.
But only one has managed to accomplish a feat that Premier League debutant Tijjani Reijnders managed in City’s 4-0 demolition of Wolves on Saturday evening.
City got their Premier League campaign off to a good start with a comfortable win at Wolves thanks to a brace from Erling Haaland and debut goals from Reijnders and Rayan Cherki.
Tijjani Reijnders of Manchester City celebrates scoring his team's second goal during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester City at Molineux
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Reijnders played the defence-splitting pass to spark the move for Haaland’s first, and turned provider for the striker’s second in an influential introduction to the Premier League.
Tijjani Reijnders matches Sergio Aguero record in eye-catching Man City debut
Reijnders is a summer signing from AC Milan, and he started three of City’s games at the FIFA Club World Cup in the USA. Last week he netted twice in a friendly at Palermo, before his goal and assist against Wolves on his Premier League debut.
And that return has only been managed once before by a Manchester City player, earning Reijnders a notable record on his first start in the league.
Sergio Aguero of Manchester City celebrates after scoring the second goal during the Barclays Premier League match between Manchester City and Swansea City at Etihad Stadium on August 15, 2011
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The only other player to score and assist on their Premier League debut for City was Sergio Aguero in 2011 when he scored twice against Swansea.
Aguero went on to score 184 Premier League goals over a ten-year spell, giving him the most goals by a foreign player in the division.
Pep Guardiola hails ‘exceptional’ Tijjani Reijnders debut for Man City
Pep Guardiola challenged his side to be sharper after their 4-0 win, noting that standards dropped in the second half but that it was normal for the first game of the season.
Tijjani Reijnders of Manchester City takes on Joao Gomes and Andre of Wolverhampton Wanderers during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester City at Molineux
Photo by Stuart Leggett/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images
He was full of praise for Reijnders, however, telling BBC Sport: “His pace, he can help with the holding midfield. He can make runs inside the pockets and the spaces that sometimes we allow defenders to create.
“At AC Milan he was exceptional and the [Netherlands] national team. We knew he is a top signing for the coming years for City.”
After a season of struggle without Rodri, City will hope that Reijnders can offer a new dimension in the middle of the pitch and build on his goalscoring start to life at the Etihad Stadium.