Without a goal for six games
©IMAGO
Said El Mala is a high-flyer at 1. FC Köln, but recently suffered a small dip in his performance after a brilliant start. The 19-year-old has been waiting for a goal participation for six games, previously there were ten in 16 Bundesliga appearances. The fact that effectiveness has recently decreased is not a reason for concern for coach Lukas Kwasniok.
The scoring return was still good even after 22 games, emphasized the trainer at the press conference before the home game against TSG Hoffenheim on Saturday (3:30 p.m.). “But if you look at it more closely, it has become more difficult for him in the last few games. Regardless of whether he starts or comes in.” Kwasniok cites the analysis of the opponents as the main reason for this: “Let’s take a look at Stuttgart: Said comes in – what do they do? They bring Vagnoman. That means: the opponent is preparing much more for El Mala.”
The winger last scored on January 10th in a 2-2 draw at 1. FC Heidenheim, the first meeting with the bottom team. All other teams will now meet Cologne and El Mala for at least the second time. “The next step will be to always perform under difficult conditions. And we will support him in this,” explains Kwasniok.
There is unlikely to be another market value update – like in December, when El Mala was upgraded from 18 million to 40 million – in the upcoming March update. Nevertheless, Kwasniok is convinced that the development in Cologne is not yet over (discuss the new Cologne market values here). “We are confident that we won’t be completely wrong in the future either. Because the past has shown that we can accompany him in his development and he can be a very decisive factor for us.”
