Short stay, solid return
Tijjani Reijnders' time at the Etihad is effectively over. Manchester City are expected to exchange the final paperwork with Al Qadsiah today, taking the Netherlands international to the Saudi Pro League.
The fee, according to transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano, has been settled at €61m — a decent sum for a player who only arrived last summer.
It means Reijnders' City career will span barely a year. He was signed with a view to playing a significant role in midfield this season, particularly given the upheaval since Enzo Maresca took over from Pep Guardiola. Instead, he becomes part of the reshaping Maresca is overseeing in his first transfer window.
Unless something unexpected surfaces during the final formalities, the move is close to completion.
For a club that has rarely been shy about moving players on quickly when the numbers stack up, this one looks tidy enough. €61m for a midfielder who never quite established himself as a guaranteed starter is not to be sniffed at.
The money lands in the kitty with weeks of the window still to run. Whether Maresca reinvests it in another midfielder or uses it to balance the books elsewhere remains to be seen. Either way, Reijnders' brief stint in blue is winding down.