Tottenham could get an opportunity to sign a Bundesliga winger in the summer.
Tottenham Hotspur did not accelerate their transfer business beyond signing two players in the recently concluded January window. Conor Gallagher arrived from Atletico Madrid to bolster the Lilywhites’ midfield unit, with teenage prodigy Souza joining from Santos soon after.
The north Londoners had made it among the priorities to sign a winger in the winter transfer window, especially after selling Brennan Johnson to Crystal Palace and losing Mohammed Kudus to injury for months. Thomas Frank revealed last week that the club looked at signing Antoine Semenyo from Bournemouth, but the Ghanaian international opted to join Manchester City.
Maghnes Akliouche was among the prime targets, but Tottenham decided not to buckle to AS Monaco’s £50m+ valuation. FC Koln winger Said El Mala was also heavily linked with a move to Spurs.
Said El Mala planning to depart FC Koln in the summer
Said El Mala has been a sensation in the Bundesliga this season, notching seven goals and three assists in 20 appearances for FC Koln thus far. The diminutive winger’s dazzling displays in an FC Koln shirt have left several clubs sitting back and taking notice. His agent, Martin Carmona, who, despite being in contact with a few Premier League clubs, insisted that the teenager will not depart FC Koln in January. And it exactly happened like that.
Brighton and Hove Albion submitted an offer between €25m and €30m plus bonuses to sign Said El Mala last week, which was rejected by the Bundesliga club. While the €30m was certainly appealing to the Bundesliga club, managing director Thomas Kessler and his team pondered Brighton’s offer before rebuffing it.
Now, according to a report from Sport Bild, El Mala wants to leave Koln in the summer. Internally, Koln value their prized asset at around £45m, and should he continue his excellent form from now on until the end of the season, that price may rise.
With the German winger planning to move on from his club at the end of the season, Tottenham will have the opportunity to convince him to arrive in north London. A left-winger by trade, El Mala could solve a glaring issue in attack for the Lilywhites. The nimble-footed Koln star will bring dynamism, flair and creativity from the left flank, whilst improving the squad depth.
He could face a challenge to get acclimatised to the demands of Premier League football and is still raw in some aspects of the game, which is natural for a 19-year-old, but eventually his talent will shine through. All in all, El Mala is a player Tottenham cannot afford to miss out on as he possesses the potential to solve their left-wing conundrum.
