Said El Mala’s recent decision to turn down Brentford was the 19-year-old’s, and not that of his mother as has been suggested.
Express report on the forward today and how his future continues to leave 1. FC Köln sweating this summer.
Brentford rejection
The newspaper explains that the question over whether Said El Mala will stay or leave the German club this summer continues to dominate the landscape for them.
Just a few weeks ago, they were on the verge of reaching an agreement with Brentford for him. The Bees were happy to pay 1. FC Köln’s €50m asking price.
A deal appeared to be progressing but was then cancelled at the last minute. Sport Witness covered reports at the time stating that it was Sabrina El Mala, his mother and agent, who had cancelled the deal. She was reportedly waiting for a better offer to arrive.
Express insist that is not the case, though. They say that while the El Mala family pulled out at the last minute before decisive talks took place, the decision was the player’s to make.
Brentford not right
While he could have earned around €30m at Brentford over five years, he was not keen on the move. The decision to turn down Brentford was reached by mutual agreement.
According to Express’ information, Said told 1. FC Köln sporting director Thomas Kessler that he didn’t consider Brentford to be the right move for him.
He, it seems, wants to wait for the summer to develop. That way he can discover what other options may be available to him.
After a breakout season in the Bundesliga, in which he was undoubtedly the breakout star, he is perhaps waiting for better offers than Brentford to arrive.
Either way, the insistence now is that he made the choice to turn down Brentford this summer, rather than his mother.
