Tijjani Reijnders
Dutch footballer (born 1998)
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Tijjani Martinus Jan Reijnders (Dutch pronunciation: [tiˈdʒaːni ˈrɛi̯ndərs]; born 29 July 1998) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Premier League club Manchester City and the Netherlands national team.
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Reijnders with AC Milan in 2024 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Tijjani Martinus Jan Reijnders[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 29 July 1998[2] | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Zwolle, Netherlands | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[3] | ||||||||||||||||
| Position | Midfielder | ||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||
Current team | Manchester City | ||||||||||||||||
| Number | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2007 | WVF Zwolle | ||||||||||||||||
| 2007–2011 | PEC Zwolle | ||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2015 | Twente | ||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | CSV '28 | ||||||||||||||||
| 2016–2017 | PEC Zwolle | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2017 | PEC Zwolle | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2017–2021 | Jong AZ | 92 | (19) | ||||||||||||||
| 2018–2023 | AZ | 96 | (9) | ||||||||||||||
| 2019–2020 | → RKC Waalwijk (loan) | 8 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2023–2025 | AC Milan | 73 | (13) | ||||||||||||||
| 2025– | Manchester City | 27 | (5) | ||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||
| 2018–2019 | Netherlands U20 | 15 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2023– | Netherlands | 30 | (7) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23:50, 9 May 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 10:19, 29 March 2026 (UTC) | |||||||||||||||||
After representing various Dutch junior teams, Reijnders began his career with his hometown club, PEC Zwolle, before moving to fellow Dutch club AZ in the 2017–18 season. He was then loaned to RKC Waalwijk until the conclusion of the 2019–20 campaign, returning to AZ as a mainstay. He signed for AC Milan in the summer of 2023 and won the 2024–25 Supercoppa Italiana. After two years at the Italian club, he signed for Manchester City in 2025.
Reijnders is a Dutch international, having progressed from the under-20 level onwards. He made his senior international debut for the country in September 2023.
Club career
Early career
Reijnders started his career with the Twente youth team. He played at Twente until the U-17 team before being released to CSV '28 and playing for one year from 2015 to 2016.[4]
In 2016, Reijnders joined his hometown team PEC Zwolle U-19 where he then moved up the level and appeared in the Eredivisie club's first team.
AZ
In 2017, development of his career accelerated rapidly. From working at a local Aldi supermarket and training in Zwolle, he crossed over to AZ's Under-21 team and moved up to the first professional team in 2018.[5]
In 2020, he was loaned to RKC Waalwijk for six months, from January to June.[6] Afterwards, Reijnders returned to AZ and became part of the first team, in which he managed to play in the 2022–23 Europa Conference League semi-finals.[7] Reijnders was named to the Eredivisie Team of the Month in September 2022 and April 2023.
AC Milan
On 19 July 2023, Reijnders joined Serie A club AC Milan, signing a five-year contract until June 2028.[8] On 21 August, he made his first competitive start for Rossoneri in a Serie A match against Bologna.[9] On 11 November, in a Serie A match against Lecce at the Stadio Via del mare, Reijnders scored his debut goal for Milan.[10] On 3 March 2025, AC Milan announced that Tijjani Reijnders had signed a contract extension, committing to the club until 30 June 2030.[11]
Reijnders was listed on the 2024–25 Serie A Team of the Season and was named the Serie A Best Midfielder of the season.[12][13]
Manchester City
On 11 June 2025, Premier League club Manchester City announced the signing of Reijnders on a five-year deal reportedly worth £46.5m.[14][15] On 16 August, Reijnders made his league debut for the club in a 4–0 away win against Wolverhampton Wanderers, scoring the second goal of the game and assisting Erling Haaland for the third.[16] On 22 March 2026, Reijnders won his first trophy for the club, the Carabao Cup, beating Arsenal 2-0 in the final.[17]
International career
Prior to receiving his first call-up to the Dutch senior team in June 2023 for the UEFA Nations League Finals, Reijnders was also eligible to represent Indonesia through his mother's lineage, but he chose to represent his birth country.[18][19]
On 7 September 2023, Reijnders made his Netherlands debut as a substitute in a 3–0 win over Greece in a UEFA Euro 2024 qualifier.[20] On 13 October, he made his first start as the Netherlands were defeated 2–1 by France in the same competition.[21]
Reijnders scored his first senior international goal in a 4–0 win over Scotland at the Johan Cruyff Arena on 22 March 2024.[22]
On 29 May 2024, Reijnders was named in the Netherlands' squad for UEFA Euro 2024.[23]
Style of play
Reijnders is a mobile central midfielder with a penchant for going forward into the final third and the opposition's penalty area, to either make attempts at scoring or to press opponents.
Upon his transfer to Milan, he was immediately integrated into the team's starting XI by manager Stefano Pioli as a left-sided central midfielder, known as mezzala in Italy, in a 4–3–3 formation. He also played as part of the double pivot in a 4–2–3–1 formation, again primarily on the left despite being right-footed.
According to Reijnders, tactical reasons played a somewhat significant role in him choosing AC Milan over Barcelona as his proposed playing position in the latter team would have limited his movement.[24]
Personal life
Reijnders is the son of the former footballer Martin Reijnders, as well as the older brother of Eliano Reijnders, a professional footballer who currently plays for Persib Bandung.[25] Reijnders is of Indonesian descent through his Moluccan mother.[26] He was named after former Nigeria and Ajax forward Tijani Babangida.[27]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 9 May 2026[28]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| PEC Zwolle | 2017–18 | Eredivisie | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||||
| Jong AZ | 2017–18 | Eerste Divisie | 32 | 6 | — | — | — | — | 32 | 6 | ||||
| 2018–19 | Eerste Divisie | 36 | 8 | — | — | — | — | 36 | 8 | |||||
| 2019–20 | Eerste Divisie | 16 | 3 | — | — | — | — | 16 | 3 | |||||
| 2020–21 | Eerste Divisie | 8 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 8 | 2 | |||||
| Total | 92 | 19 | — | — | — | — | 92 | 19 | ||||||
| AZ | 2017–18 | Eredivisie | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| 2018–19 | Eredivisie | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||||
| 2019–20 | Eredivisie | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 3 | 0 | ||||
| 2020–21 | Eredivisie | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 22 | 0 | ||||
| 2021–22 | Eredivisie | 36 | 6 | 4 | 0 | — | 7[c] | 0 | — | 47 | 6 | |||
| 2022–23 | Eredivisie | 34 | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | 18[c] | 4 | — | 54 | 7 | |||
| Total | 96 | 9 | 7 | 0 | — | 25 | 4 | — | 128 | 13 | ||||
| RKC Waalwijk (loan) | 2019–20 | Eredivisie | 8 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 8 | 0 | ||||
| AC Milan | 2023–24 | Serie A | 36 | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | 12[d] | 1 | — | 50 | 4 | ||
| 2024–25 | Serie A | 37 | 10 | 5 | 2 | — | 10[e] | 3 | 2[f] | 0 | 54 | 15 | ||
| Total | 73 | 13 | 7 | 2 | — | 22 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 104 | 19 | |||
| Manchester City | 2024–25 | Premier League | — | — | — | — | 3[g] | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||||
| 2025–26 | Premier League | 27 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 10[e] | 0 | — | 45 | 7 | ||
| Total | 27 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 48 | 7 | ||
| Career total | 297 | 45 | 19 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 57 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 382 | 57 | ||
- Includes KNVB Cup, Coppa Italia, FA Cup
- Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
- Six appearances in UEFA Champions League, six appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa League
- Appearances in UEFA Champions League
- Appearances in Supercoppa Italiana
- Appearances in FIFA Club World Cup
International
- As of match played 27 March 2026[29]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Netherlands | 2023 | 6 | 0 |
| 2024 | 14 | 3 | |
| 2025 | 9 | 3 | |
| 2026 | 1 | 1 | |
| Total | 30 | 7 | |
- As of match played 27 March 2026
Netherlands score listed first, score column indicates score after each Reijnders goal[29]
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 March 2024 | Johan Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands | 7 |  Scotland | 1–0 | 4–0 | Friendly |
| 2 | 7 September 2024 | Philips Stadion, Eindhoven, Netherlands | 16 |  Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2–1 | 5–2 | 2024–25 UEFA Nations League A |
| 3 | 10 September 2024 | Johan Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands | 17 |  Germany | 1–0 | 2–2 | 2024–25 UEFA Nations League A |
| 4 | 20 March 2025 | De Kuip, Rotterdam, Netherlands | 21 |  Spain | 2–1 | 2–2 | 2024–25 UEFA Nations League A |
| 5 | 9 October 2025 | National Stadium, Ta' Qali, Malta | 26 |  Malta | 3–0 | 4–0 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 6 | 17 November 2025 | Johan Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands | 29 |  Lithuania | 1–0 | 4–0 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 7 | 27 March 2026 | Johan Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands | 30 |  Norway | 2–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
Honours
AC Milan
- Supercoppa Italiana: 2024–25[30]
- Coppa Italia runner-up: 2024–25
Manchester City
Individual
- Serie A Team of the Season: 2024–25[13]
- Serie A Best Midfielder: 2024–25[12]
- The Athletic Serie A Team of the Season: 2024–25[33]
- Serie A Team of the Year: 2024–25[34]
