Reijnders: I'm not at City to replace De Bruyne

BOCA RATON, Florida -- Tijjani Reijnders insists helium is not aiming to regenerate Kevin De Bruyne astatine Manchester City contempt revealing the Belgian midfielder is 1 of his idols.

Reijnders has joined City successful a £46.5 cardinal ($63.07m) woody from Milan conscionable arsenic De Bruyne has ended his 10-year enactment astatine the nine to move to Napoli.

The Netherlands planetary said helium has modelled parts of his crippled connected the City legend, arsenic good arsenic erstwhile Barcelona and Spain prima Andres Iniesta.

But helium said helium volition effort to beryllium his ain antheral astatine the Etihad Stadium.

"I'm not present to regenerate him [De Bruyne]," said Reijnders astatine City's Club World Cup grooming basal successful Florida.

"I person to play my ain game. But I instrumentality things from antithetic players and what they tin bash truly good and effort to accommodate that. With Kevin De Bruyne, [it was] however helium was scanning the pitch, the passes helium gave."

De Bruyne flourished nether Pep Guardiola and was doubly named the Premier League's champion player.

Reijnders arrives astatine City having been named arsenic the champion midfielder successful Serie A, and the 26-year-old is hoping helium tin spell to the adjacent level nether his caller manager.

"That's besides a large thing, of course, the champion manager successful the world," helium said.

"I americium precise anxious to larn caller things present and benignant of playing and that's what I'm looking guardant to."

Like Reijnders, left-back Rayan Aït-Nouri has besides moved to City successful clip to beryllium portion of the squad for the Club World Cup.

The 24-year-old, who has joined from Wolves, could marque his debut successful their opening crippled against Moroccan broadside Wydad AC successful Philadelphia connected Wednesday.

"It's a large step," helium said.

"Big measurement for my career. I've been successful the Premier League for a agelong time, I played for 5 years. The league is precise hard. They person a batch of precise bully teams. But yeah, for definite the measurement is much higher. I volition effort to springiness my best."