Tijjani Reijnders Sold to Al Qadsiah for £51 Million

City have agreed a £51 million deal to sell Tijjani Reijnders to Saudi Pro League side Al Qadsiah, according to The Independent, drawing a swift line under the Dutch midfielder’s brief stay at the Etihad Stadium.

He arrived from AC Milan last summer for £46.5m, talked up as a dynamic presence for the next phase of City’s midfield. One season, 47 appearances and seven goals later, he is gone – and at a profit.

One-season experiment ends

Reijnders has already accepted personal terms with the Saudi club, sealing what is understood to be a lucrative move for the 26-year-old. City’s agreement with Al Qadsiah pushes their transfer income this window to around £100m, underlining the scale of the reset underway.

On the pitch, his year in England told a familiar story. Reijnders started brightly, offering legs and energy between the lines, but his influence faded as the campaign wore on. When it mattered, he slipped out of the starting XI.

Pep Guardiola consistently leaned on the trusted axis of captain Bernardo Silva and Rodri in central areas. Reijnders, despite his versatility, became the odd man out. Domestic interest arrived from Nottingham Forest, yet the midfielder chose the financial power and fresh start of the Saudi Pro League instead.

Ruthless rebuild, big numbers

City’s summer is being defined by hard decisions and heavy spending. The departures of Reijnders, Nathan Ake and James Trafford have banked around £100m, giving the club serious room to manoeuvre.

Ake has joined Fenerbahce, Trafford has completed a permanent move to Leeds United, and Reijnders now heads to Al Qadsiah. Each exit fits a clear pattern: cash in, refresh, and move away from a core that has carried the club through recent title-winning years.

At the same time, City have fired a statement back into the market. The £116m signing of Nottingham Forest midfielder Elliot Anderson is the headline act of their rebuild, a huge outlay that signals there will be no gentle transition. They intend to stay at the top by spending like it.

With Bernardo Silva already gone and Rodri strongly admired by Barcelona, the shape of City’s midfield is being ripped up in real time. Reijnders’ sale is not an isolated decision; it is part of a sweeping tactical and generational reset.

He becomes a casualty of that shift. A one-season project sacrificed so the club can lean into a new vision.

Eyes on Enzo and Bouaddi

The money from Reijnders will not sit idle. City are actively scouring Europe for another top-level midfielder and are prepared to move quickly.

Chelsea’s Enzo Fernandez has emerged as a surprise name on their list, a potential blockbuster move that would send another jolt through the Premier League. Morocco international Ayyoub Bouaddi is also under serious consideration as City weigh up how to rebuild the engine room around Anderson.

Reijnders now turns towards a new life in Saudi Arabia. City turn towards the next target. The only real question is how radically this new-look midfield will reshape the balance of power at the top of English football.