It has been a very positive last few months for Tijjani Reijnders, who has now established himself as a starter not only for his new club but also for his country too.
As La Gazzetta dello Sport writes, it seems to be a case of ‘Reijnders plus 10 others’ for Milan and it has been since he joined from AZ Alkmaar during the summer. He has played as a mezzala, a playmaker and even a regista, becoming a central point no matter what the system.
Pioli has already had to deal with an injury to Ruben Loftus-Cheek and the ongoing doubts in the No.6 role, so the Dutchman has become a reliable pillar for him to build around, be it in a three-man midfield or a double pivot.
Reijnders is also increasingly important to the Dutch national team, for whom he will have a central role in view of the 2024 European Championships. It is something that he has had to earn, and was far from a formality a few months ago.
He has made 19 appearances this season already and has amassed 1559 minutes on the field which is the most of anyone in the squad. The 25-year-old has started every game except his Champions League debut against Newcastle, in which he was sent on in the final half hour.
Pioli explained a few weeks ago: “He is an exceptional boy, a total midfielder good at driving the ball with his head held high and capable of inserting himself into the spaces that defences allow. I expect goals and a few more shots, he knows how to play in multiple roles and is a player of an important level.”
Reijnders is a multi-role player, in the middle of the pitch he can act in several positions, but his coach wants more attacking output from him. He scored seven goals in the league for AZ last season, in the previous one he had six.
With Milan, it took him a little longer to get his first goal and it came in mid-November at the Stadio Via del Mare during the 2-2 draw against Lecce. He has two assists: the first to Giroud in the 2-0 against Bologna in round one, then for Tomori in the 3-1 win against Cagliari.
The start of the season with Milan also coincided with his first appearances for the Oranje shirt. He made his debut with the Netherlands on 7 September in the Nations League, in the 3-0 defeat of Greece.
From that moment on, he has been part of Ronald Koeman’s squad on a permanent basis, and he fielded him on 5 other occasions (three of these from the start). After qualifying for the European Championships, the next step will be to experience the first major tournament.
