Transfer news: Arsenal eye Reijnders as Man City’s £46m man loses his way

Arsenal have added Manchester City midfielder Tijjani Reijnders to their summer transfer news longlist, according to journalist Fraz Fletcher. The Gunners see him as a potential option to strengthen their midfield engine room, particularly because a packed 2026-27 fixture schedule, with Premier League title defence and deep European runs firmly on the agenda, will demand real squad depth from Mikel Arteta’s side.

Reijnders joined City from AC Milan last summer in a deal worth £46.5 million, but his playing time has shrunk considerably since that bright opening run of form. He started the campaign well, yet his influence faded sharply after the turn of the year, leaving him well down Guardiola’s pecking order. City and Reijnders are now expected to hold talks at the end of the season to clarify his future, though a departure after just one year looks unlikely at this stage.

Transfer news competition makes a deal complicated

Manchester City would reportedly consider letting Reijnders leave this summer if they recoup their initial outlay, with Juventus treating him as a priority target. Beyond Juventus, Newcastle United, Aston Villa, and his former club AC Milan are also tracking the situation, meaning Arsenal face meaningful competition should they decide to escalate their interest from longlist to genuine pursuit. Reijnders earns an estimated £230,000 per week at the Etihad, a wage that fits comfortably within Arsenal’s current pay structure following their title-winning season.

Arsenal plan eight exits and a £45m defender — transfer news explained

Does Arsenal’s transfer news interest in Reijnders make sense?

Realistically, this one sits in the “nice to have, not need to have” bracket for Arsenal. Martin Zubimendi has genuinely thrived under Arteta, and the Gunners’ midfield reinforcement last summer already proved more effective than Reijnders’ contribution at City. Arteta runs a structured, high-intensity system where midfielders carry enormous defensive and progressive responsibility. Reijnders has the technical quality to fit that profile, but a player who lost form and confidence at City, for reasons that remain unclear, carries real risk at around £46m-plus.

Arsenal’s most urgent summer business lies out wide, where the left-forward position continues to underperform. Spending heavily on a midfielder who struggled in the Premier League’s most demanding system feels like a sideways move. Keeping tabs on him costs nothing, but unless Zubimendi or Odegaard departs, the latest transfer news around Reijnders should stay firmly on the longlist rather than climb any higher.