“I watched the clips” – Tijjani Reijnders names three players inspiring his Manchester City future | OneFootball

Tijjani Reijnders has named two Manchester City midfield legends that he is taking inspiration from in the build-up to the start of his Etihad Stadium journey.

The Netherlands international became Manchester City’s third formal announcement of the summer market as Hugo Viana and the club’s recruitment bosses welcomed four new signings into the Etihad Stadium this summer.

Adding much-needed energy, versatility, and perhaps an eye for a goal, Tijjani Reijnders is expected to become a mainstay in Pep Guardiola’s operation and could secure his full debut for the club as soon as Wednesday evening.

Manchester City are currently in the United States for the FIFA Club World Cup where an initial group stage agenda awaits consisting of three matches against Morocco’s Wydad AC, the United Arab Emirates’ Al Ain, and Italy’s Juventus.

As part of their training camp in Boca Raton, Florida there have been various opportunities for the media to discuss numerous topics with Manchester City’s stars, and particularly the new names that have come through the door.

Speaking to MailSport’s Jack Gaughan from City’s FIFA Club World Cup training base, Tijjani Reijnders has admitted to taking inspiration and learning from two of the club’s very best central operators.

“I’ve watched the clips of Kevin [De Bruyne] a lot but [Ilkay] Gundogan is someone I can learn a lot from. It’s nice to see him nearby and the way he does it,” the 26-year-old revealed.

“That is what I did last season with Milan, being more on the scoresheet,” he added. “It’s very important to score goals as a midfielder and it’s what I’m looking for, that and assists.

“When I was younger I always looked to Andres Iniesta, how he read the game, how he played the game, his technical ability.”

Looking back on his development with AC Milan and his positional preference as competitive matchday duty looms at Manchester City for the first time, Tijjani Reijnders said, “The first season at Milan I wasn’t calm in my head when I had opportunities and it was something I was thinking about in the summer after.

“I watched clips back of myself when I got into those situations and tried to adapt to those kind of things in the second season, to be calmer in front of goal. I’m a box-to-box player who likes to carry the ball but also to be in the build-up part and eventually to connect to the attacking part and try to find assists and goals. And that’s what I want to bring here.”

Reijnders continued, “It’s the No 8 position and that is why they got me. Now I have to fill the No 8 position and do my best to show that I should play. I’m really looking forward to it.

“I hear from a lot of colleagues in the national team how the Premier League is and I wanted to experience it.”

Alongside Tijjani Reijnders, two other outfield players will also be optimistic of their chances of securing an early debut for Manchester City this week, namely the left-sided full-back Rayan Ait-Nouri and attacking midfielder Rayan Cherki.