Midfielder Tijjani Reijnders believes that AC Milan have what it takes to go deep in the Europa League and perhaps even lift the trophy in Dublin in May.
Milan are in pole position to get through to the round of 16 of the UEFA Europa League after beating Rennes 3-0 in the first leg of the play-off round, with the second leg tonight at Roazhon Park.
Rennes came into that game last week in exceptional form having won every game in 2024, but in truth a Ruben Loftus-Cheek brace and a rocket from Rafael Leao meant that they were quite comfortably beaten.
Reijnders was in the midfield for that game and despite the fact that he has only been wearing the red and black shirt for a few months, he seems like the immovable member of the midfield having played in all but one game this season.
Reijnders did an interview for UEFA.com that was published on the day of the return leg against Rennes and he discussed a number of topics from joining Milan to his European ambitions.
You come from a family of footballers. Have you always wanted to follow this path? Do you know what it means for a Dutchman to wear the Milan shirt?
“Yes, my father was also a professional footballer, in the Netherlands, Finland and the States. I have vague memories of his games, but I remember well that I started playing very early in the garden and that within a short time I moved on to real football.”
“When you arrive at Milanello for the first time, or at Casa Milan, you immediately understand the importance that [Ruud] Gullit, [Frank] Rijkaard, [Marco] van Basten had. For a Dutchman to be here and play in this great club is something extraordinary.”
What is your goal in the UEFA Europa League?
“There are many good teams in the running, but we are Milan and we must have only one objective, to win the Europa League. We have quality and we can definitely go far. We want to win the Europa League and we will do everything to do it.”
More must-reads: