Borussia Dortmund end negotiations with Cologne over Saïd El Mala transfer
After a back‑and‑forth transfer saga, it’s now official: Saïd El Mala will not be moving from Cologne to Borussia Dortmund this summer despite another improved offer from the Black & Yellows.
Despite wide reports in recent days discussing the possibility of a move for El Mala from Dortmund, what would have been one of the biggest transfer coups of the summer has now fallen through.
Speaking to Funke Mediengruppe, BVB managing director Lars Ricken explained in no uncertain terms: "Saïd El Mala is not a Borussia Dortmund player, and he will not become one this summer."
"Over the past few days, we held open discussions with the officials at Cologne, but they rejected our final offer. Borussia Dortmund will not submit another and will no longer pursue the transfer," he continued.
Given the departures of Karim Adeyemi to Barcelona and Julian Brandt to Ajax, Dortmund will now continue searching for a high‑profile reinforcement for the two positions behind the striker.
That said, the club has already brought in Konstantinos Karetsas, one of Europe’s most sought‑after young talents, who has already begun establishing himself at the club after scoring a wondergoal on his debut in a pre-season victory away to Premier League champions Arsenal.
El Mala, meanwhile, will remain with the Billy Goats for now, where he netted 13 goals and provided four assists in the Bundesliga last term, in what was his first season in Germany’s top flight.
Despite these impressive performances, Julian Nagelsmann left the 19‑year‑old out of Germany's FIFA World Cup 2026, even though he had previously called him up for a friendly against Luxembourg in November 2025 in which the youngster was an unused substitute.
Now, El Mala will look to once again prove himself at Cologne in hopes of finally earning a chance on the pitch under new DFB head coach Jürgen Klopp, who will take charge of his first game on 27 September when Germany welcome Greece to Augsburg's WWK Arena in the UEFA Nations League (kick-off 8.45pm CEST).
