Barcelona join Manchester City in the race to sign €50m-rated AC Milan star – Report | OneFootball

FC Barcelona are preparing to close out a successful 2024/25 campaign with a final La Liga clash against Athletic Club at San Mames. With the domestic treble already secured, attention has swiftly shifted to off-pitch matters: contract renewals, transfer activity, and strategic planning for next season.

Over the past week, the club has wrapped up contract renewals for both Raphinha and Hansi Flick. In terms of transfers, Barcelona have shipped out Alex Valle to Como on a permanent transfer and are closing in on an agreement with AS Monaco for Ansu Fati.

Barcelona’s transfer targets

In terms of incomings, although there seems to be a lot of smoke, it hasn’t resulted in a fire yet. There have been many names that the club has been linked with but it is still unclear as to what Barcelona’s spending power this summer would be.

Comparing Tijjani Reijnders to Frenkie de Jong and Pedri. (Source: DataMB)

Now, as per Gazzetta Dello Sport via Sempre Milan, Barcelona and Real Madrid have joined Manchester City in the race to sign AC Milan midfield star Tijjani Reijnders. The English club have been linked with the player for quite some time now.

The Dutch midfielder is one of those rare profiles in world football who can control the tempo of the midfield in a game at the pace that he desires. He almost reminds you of Pedri in the way he orchestrates play for the Serie A giants.

The €50m-rated midfielder is exactly what Man City need, as they look to replace the ageing Ilkay Gundogan in midfield. On the other hand, it is also the same profile that Real Madrid are lacking ever since Toni Kroos retired from the game.

Frenkie de Jong and Pedri are the best in the world. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)

No need for another midfield orchestrator

However, at Barcelona, there is no need for Reijnders. Hansi Flick already has two midfielders who are experts at controlling the tempo of a game – Pedri and Frenkie de Jong. There is no need to spend money on bringing in one more orchestrator.

Of course, this could also be an attempt from the player’s agent to drum up interest in his client to get him a better deal with Manchester City. It often helps to use the names of Barcelona and Real Madrid in such situations.

Whether this speculation is genuine or a tactical nudge from the player’s camp remains to be seen. For now, it’s best to watch this space without reading too much into the noise.