Before European football, Reijnders was cycling through Zwolle after school to work four-hour shifts at Aldi. He was still living with his parents and coming through PEC Zwolle when his mother pushed him towards the job.
He tried to avoid being hired when he submitted the application. The response, as Reijnders recalls it, was blunt: “You start tomorrow.”
His duties included working the tills and carrying jars of pickles from storage to the shelves. There was no academy fast track or guaranteed path to the professional game - just school, supermarket shifts and football.
Reijnders’ progress accelerated after his move from PEC Zwolle to AZ Alkmaar. He began to establish himself at a higher level and played a key role as AZ reached the Conference League semi-finals, scoring against West Ham in the first leg.
That form earned him a move to AC Milan, although even the first approach from the Italian giants came with complications. Reijnders was on safari, with dinner planned on the savannah, when Milan’s Stefano Pioli and Geoffrey Moncada wanted to speak with him.
The call was delayed because of the buffaloes near his table. “Ah yes, there were two buffaloes by your table,” the guide explained.
Reijnders’ rise to the Netherlands team and Manchester City offers a reminder that elite careers do not always begin in polished academies. His story is built on ordinary work, family influence and the patience to keep progressing.
Now established on the biggest stages, he carries that perspective into his next chapter. The challenge will be turning an unusual journey into sustained success at City and for the Netherlands.