Lothar Matthäus is convinced that Said El Mala wants to move to Borussia Dortmund and supports a transfer.
“El Mala wants to join Dortmund,” Matthäus wrote in his Sky column. “He may not be saying that out loud. But of course it is more interesting to play in the Champions League and for the top CL places than to avoid the bottom third with Cologne.”
With his national team ambitions also in mind, Matthäus believes a move to BVB makes sense for the 19-year-old left winger: “To put himself forward to new national team coach Jürgen Klopp, international matches are especially important. El Mala could certainly take a big step if the move to Dortmund were to go through. With his performances in Cologne, he has shown that he is ready.”
Over the past few days, the poker over El Mala has intensified. According to widespread reports, the player has asked to leave. The two clubs are currently haggling over a fee. Cologne are reportedly demanding €50 million. “That is a lot of money, that is basically two Adeyemis,” Matthäus said. Karim Adeyemi joined FC Barcelona a few days ago for €22 million.
AS Roma are also in the running
“Dortmund, too, have their limits,” Matthäus explained. “But everyone knows the market, everyone knows the rules: I do think a fee in the region of €40 million should at least lead to talks.” That is also said to be the range of Dortmund’s highest offer so far, although it includes bonuses that are reportedly unrealistic to achieve. However, after the friendly defeat to Fortuna Düsseldorf (1-2) at the weekend, BVB sporting director Ole Book described the figures as a “flood of false information”.
Roma, meanwhile, are said to be willing to spend significantly more than €40 million on El Mala. He has also been repeatedly linked with various Premier League clubs in the past. El Mala’s contract in Cologne runs until 2030.