1. FC Cologne
Winter transfer? This is what El Mala says about his future
12/3/2025 – 3:23 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
1. FC Köln can plan with Saïd El Mala at least until the end of the season. This is what the offensive player says about his future and the interest of top clubs.
Saïd El Mala has no thoughts of changing for the time being. On Wednesday the new star of the… 1. FC Cologne at the Geißbockheim for the first time detailed questions and answers. When asked whether he would definitely stay in Cologne in the winter, the 19-year-old assured him briefly and clearly: “Yes!”
El Mala scored five goals in his first twelve Bundesliga appearances and prepared three more. Both top German clubs such as FC Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund as well as international representatives such as FC Barcelona and Manchester City are said to be already queuing up to take over the player. Of course, this doesn’t go unnoticed by the left winger.
“If you have a few scorers in the Bundesliga as a young player, it’s normal for several clubs to come,” El Mala said in a relaxed manner and added: “I’m aware of that, but it doesn’t affect me.” The potential interest in him is “a nice insight and a reward for the performance,” but: “I’m concentrating here on FC – nothing more.”
El Mala’s commitment is likely to apply until the summer break. The billy goats will not force a transfer of their most sought-after and valuable player, but after the end of the season, sporting director Thomas Kessler is likely to receive one lucrative offer after another. Especially if El Mala jumps on the World Cup bandwagon.
After his first call-up to the senior national team in November, the whiz kid tasted blood, even though he wasn’t allowed to make his debut: “It was extremely nice and a lot of fun. I hope for further nominations.” Although he doesn’t have the World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico in the back of his mind yet: “I’m not thinking about that yet. We still have a lot of games to play here before the World Cup. I’m trying to give everything for it, but we also have goals with Cologne.”
Above all, staying in the league should be mentioned. As promoted teams, FC have already gained a cushion on the bottom of the table – not least thanks to El Mala’s goal. In the long term, however, the exceptional talent from Cologne is looking to other table regions. “Everyone wants to be in the Champions League and play in the best club, to achieve the greatest thing they can,” El Mala made no secret of his dreams. But initially his focus is not on the premier class and the World Cup, but on the billy goats.