AC Milan coach Stefano Pioli has tasked Tijjani Reijnders with adding goals to his game after a successful start to life in Serie A, a report suggests.
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As has been reported by Calciomercato.com, the Italian coach wants the Dutch midfielder to take the next natural step in his game, which would be chipping in with goals.
Reijnders has been one of Pioli’s favoured players ever since he arrived at the club from AZ Alkmaar, playing in nine Serie A games and all three Champions League group games. He has managed to get two assists in Serie A, but he has not scored a goal in either competition yet.
Whilst he was not purchased for his goalscoring exploits, a sign of any good team is when goals come from all over the pitch. Reijnders does find himself in attacking positions due to his endless running, so Pioli would like to see a contribution from him.
This was shown by Pioli’s comments in his press conference: “Few goals from midfield? We have to fill the area more, we are often going one-on-one on the outside and we are crossing more than last season. We have to fill the area not only with the full-backs but also with the opposite outside forward. I think Tijjani has the characteristics to do better, both in the last pass and in the conclusions because he is a player who has always scored goals.”
Reijnders got 13 goals in 128 games for AZ.
