Köln ‘to have rejected’ improved Brighton bid for Said El Mala | OneFootball

Sport Bild reports that Köln rejected a renewed Brighton & Hove Albion offer for Said El Mala late in the winter window.

Brighton had a proposal of about €15 million rebuffed last summer, then returned with €25-30 million plus add-ons for a summer move, which Köln also turned down.

The Bundesliga club considered the timing, just before the deadline, unsuitable for negotiations, and viewed the fee as insufficient.

Brighton remain interested, with German head coach Fabian Hürzeler keen on the 19-year-old, and further talks are expected soon.

El Mala had not weighed up a transfer until recently.

Limited minutes have shifted his stance, and he has told Köln he wants to leave in the summer, with the Premier League preferred.

Brighton are offering around €15 million in fixed wages over five years, plus bonuses.

The club are also tracking his older brother, 20-year-old Malek El Mala.

An offer for him before the deadline was rejected, and the plan would be to develop him in Premier League 2 if a deal is struck.

Source: BuLi News