Tijjani Reijnders Shines in Saudi Arabia with Brace for Al-Qadsiah

Tijjani Reijnders is wasting no time justifying his price tag in Saudi Arabia.

The Netherlands midfielder, Al-Qadsiah’s record signing, delivered a ruthless brace in the Roshn League on Tuesday, driving his new club past Al-Ahli at Prince Mohammed bin Fahd Stadium in Dammam and underlining why the Saudis paid so heavily to prise him from Manchester City last summer.

The tone of the night changed early. On 14 minutes, Reijnders picked up the ball on the edge of the box and unleashed a fierce drive that ripped past Édouard Mendy, the Al-Ahli and Senegal goalkeeper, to open the scoring. One touch, one decision, one emphatic finish.

Al-Qadsiah kept coming. Deep into first-half stoppage time, with Al-Ahli already reeling, Reijnders struck again. This time he timed his run perfectly, meeting a Mohammed Abu Al-Shamat cross with a firm header for his side’s third goal before the interval. A long-range rocket, then a poacher’s finish: two very different goals, same message.

Those strikes were his second and third goals for Al-Qadsiah since his arrival from Manchester City in the last transfer window. The first had arrived early as well, in just his second appearance, during a controlled 2-0 win over Neom in the third round of the Roshn League.

The numbers are already stacking up more quickly than they did in England. At City last season, Reijnders needed four matches to find the net, scoring only once in that opening spell, against Wolverhampton on the first weekend of the Premier League campaign. In Saudi Arabia, he has hit his stride almost immediately.

That is exactly what Al-Qadsiah expected when they made him the most expensive signing in the club’s history. The deal, reported at 61 million euros, raised eyebrows across the league and set a new benchmark for the club.

Now, with his goals beginning to flow and his influence growing from midfield, the question is no longer why Al-Qadsiah paid so much for Reijnders — it is how far he can carry them in this Roshn League season.