Morning roundup: El Mala waits on record BVB move, Friday 14th August
News summary
Roma come to town on Saturday. It is the last warm-up before things get serious, and Kovač still has three things to sort out after an uneven summer.
The 2026-27 away shirt is out. Supporters warmed to the new design, which landed with the season only weeks away.
Guirassy stays the first-choice striker. There is a case, though, that his understudy has a point to prove after some eye-catching summer form.
Spare a thought for Adeyemi. He left for Barcelona in the summer, yet his pre-season has fallen flat, and Die Schwarzgelben have no cause to gloat with the fee banked.
Transfer news
Köln keep saying no. Borussia Dortmund keep coming back, and a third offer for Said El Mala now sits at about £47m (€55m) with bonuses, enough to break the club record.
El Mala has agreed personal terms, so now he waits on a fee.
The winger earned the fuss. He scored 13 Bundesliga goals with four assists for Köln last term, a haul logged on his FotMob profile.
A left-back may leave too. Almugera Kabar looks set for a Dutch loan, a switch that could remake the defender after his winter move to Hamburg fell through over a fitness dispute.
Ruhr Nachrichten link him with an Eredivisie club in the Champions League places. That beats reserve football.
Newcastle have not dropped the Nmecha idea. They see Felix Nmecha as a Guimarães replacement, but Dortmund rate him near £85m (€100m) and the answer is a firm no.
Kovač has said big offers can never be dismissed, yet a sale this window looks unlikely.
BVB Buzz opinion
Two bids down, both rejected. The third, near £47m, would smash a record that the €35m Ousmane Dembélé deal set in 2016.
So the question is fair. Is one fine season enough to justify that on a 19-year-old?
The case to spend is strong. El Mala carries the ball like few wingers in the league, and his pace and directness are what Kovač wants out wide.
Adeyemi's exit freed cash and a shirt. Pair this teenager with Karetsas behind Guirassy and the attack turns nasty.
The worry is the price versus the sample. One strong season is thin evidence.
The jump from Köln to a title race has undone gifted kids before. BVB Buzz backs the pursuit, pointing to the club's youth-first plan and to Kovač reportedly phoning the player himself.
On the profile, the gamble reads as sound. Only the fee stings.
Looking ahead
Roma visit on Saturday. The clubs have not met since 2007, so this friendly carries a little novelty on top of the fitness work.
There is a homecoming, too. Donyell Malen returns with Roma, a permanent signing now after last season's loan, and looks set to start against his old club.
Konstantinos Karetsas could get his home bow. He scored on his Dortmund debut against Arsenal, and Saturday brings his first outing at Signal Iduna Park.
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