A hefty sum in the millions beckons! Said El Mala and his family are set to cash in handsomely by staying at 1. FC Cologne
After weeks of negotiations with other clubs and an ultimately spectacularly failed move to Borussia Dortmund, Said El Mala has extended his contract with 1. FC Cologne. Alongside a salary increase, further millions await him and his family.
Sport Bild has revealed more details of the 19-year-old's contract extension, which, according to the report, could soon boost his bank balance even further for a number of reasons.
Shortly after news of the surprise U-turn broke, it had already emerged that there is no release clause in El Mala's contract, which now runs until 2031. His salary is said to have doubled to around three million euros. He was also handed the No 10 shirt, just as Lukas Podolski once was. According to the Sport Bild report, though, even more money will head the player's way sooner or later.
El Mala's mother Sabrina, who led the negotiations over her son's future this summer and also turned down FC Brentford despite an agreement between the two clubs, is said to have negotiated a five per cent sell-on clause. In other words, if a club were to put 50 million euros on the table next summer, the fee the club demanded as a fixed price, El Mala and his family would pocket 2.5 million euros. If the fee reached 100 million euros, which cannot be ruled out given the Premier League's spending power for attacking talents like him, that figure would rise to five million euros.
Will Said El Mala be allowed to leave 1. FC Cologne next summer?
Those rumours that Cologne would not stand in his way if a top club came calling next summer were firmly rejected by managing director for sport Thomas Kessler on the sidelines of the cup match against Würzburger Kickers (2-1): "It is characterised by trust. All the talks were characterised by trust. And in the end there is also no gentleman's agreement in this case - and no release clause either." Even so, if the right offer arrives, a departure just a year after signing the new deal cannot be ruled out.
A few days ago, the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger reported that the player's side had also secured a kind of signing bonus worth 500,000 euros, although it will not be paid in one lump sum as usual. Instead, he will receive it in each year that El Mala wears the Cologne shirt. More income could also come through a private contract with FC main sponsor REWE. The company, whose chief executive Lionel Souque sits on the Billy Goats' supervisory board, has apparently agreed a private deal with El Mala.
Sport Bild also report that the plan is to market the teenager as prominently as Jamal Musiala and Thomas Müller, provided he becomes a Germany international. If El Mala avoids injury around the start of the season, that could happen as early as the next international break. In mid-September, new Germany head coach Jürgen Klopp will name his first squad. El Mala had already been considered a candidate for Julian Nagelsmann's World Cup squad, but that ultimately came to nothing. What caused the most confusion was that, after Lennart Karl's injury, Nagelsmann called up midfielder Assan Ouedraogo rather than El Mala for the winger.
Why did Said El Mala not move to BVB?
Becoming a Germany international would also drive up his market value, something BVB were naturally well aware of. That was one reason Borussia Dortmund were not put off making El Mala a record signing. Including bonus payments, more than 50 million euros was on the table, according to consistent media reports. Cologne rejected it because they insisted on a fixed sum of 50 million euros. Soon after, Leipzig, who wanted to sign El Mala as the successor to Yan Diomande, also ran into FC's resistance. RB allegedly even offered slightly more than BVB, but Cologne still refused to budge.
He can also continue to enjoy the company of his brother Malek, who has so far played for the second team. His contract is also said to have been extended early until 2031 as part of the agreement, meaning the siblings remain available only as a package deal. That, too, is said to be a major factor in the exceptional talent's future planning.
