Overview
- Brentford offered a package reported at €45m guaranteed with about €5m in add‑ons plus a 15% sell‑on clause that several outlets say 1. FC Köln were prepared to accept.
- Reports on Thursday say the deal then stalled when Saïd El Mala and his representatives informed Brentford they do not intend to join the club, leaving the transfer unresolved.
- Media coverage attributes the family’s refusal in part to demands over the inclusion of his brother Malek and large commissions that Brentford were unwilling to meet.
- The proposed contract terms in reports included a deal to 2030 and roughly €4m a year for El Mala while the move would have been a record sale for Köln and a record signing for Brentford.
- The situation remains developing with a Friday deadline cited by multiple outlets and other clubs such as Bayern, Brighton and Chelsea still linked as possible destinations.