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Manchester City midfielder Tijjani Reijnders is set to be coached by a familiar figure in Saudi Arabia.

Reijnders is reportedly close to completing a £52m move to Saudi Pro League club Al-Qadsiah, only 14 months after joining Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.

The 28-year-old Netherlands international had cost City £46.5m when he signed from AC Milan last summer.

However, Reijnders made only 19 Premier League starts last season as he found it difficult to cement a regular spot in the side, and he is now nearing a move away from English football.

Reijnders marked his dream debut by scoring once and setting up another goal in City's 4-0 thrashing of Wolves on the opening day of last season.

But that proved to be arguably the peak of the Dutchman's time in Manchester, and he was not involved in either the Carabao Cup final win over Arsenal or the FA Cup final victory against Chelsea.

Reijnders started all three of City's pre-season friendlies under new head coach Enzo Maresca, who replaced Pep Guardiola this summer, but he was absent from the club's open training session on Thursday before Sunday's Community Shield meeting with Arsenal.

BBC Sport reports that he is now set to join Al-Qadsiah, who are managed by former Liverpool, Leicester City and Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers.

Rodgers took charge of the Saudi Pro League side last December when they were fifth in the table, and guided them to a fourth-place finish before they began this season with a 3-1 victory at Al-Shabab this week.

Their standout players include Italy striker Mateo Retegui and Mexico's World Cup 2026 star Julian Quinones, so landing Reijnders would represent a significant coup.

His exit would be the latest development in a summer of change in City's midfield, with Elliot Anderson having arrived from Nottingham Forest for £116m and Rodri expected to move to Barcelona.

City are also reportedly keen on Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez, who previously played under Maresca at Stamford Bridge.

They also have Mateo Kovacic and Nico Gonzalez as central midfield options, while left-back Nico O'Reilly filled in there on several occasions last season.

After taking on Arsenal in the Community Shield, Maresca's side will open their Premier League season at home to Bournemouth on Sunday, August 23.