Newcastle United latest news: Newcastle United and Chelsea have been linked with a move for FC Koln winger Said El Mala this summer.
The 19-year-old left winger has enjoyed a real breakthrough season at RheinEnergieStadion and has attracted plenty of attention across Europe. Most of his suitors, though, reportedly come from the Premier League with both Chelsea and Brighton, the latter of whom had a €30m bid rejected for the winger in January, also admirers of the German Under-21.
The Daily Mail reported Newcastle United’s interest in El Mala this week, with Kicker in Germany also detailing interest from Chelsea and the Magpies in the winger. El Mala has played 27 times in all competitions for FC Koln this season, registering eight goals and four assists in that time.
El Mala spent time in the Borussia Moenchengladbach youth ranks before moving to Meerbusch in 2021. After two years there, he joined Viktoria Koln before being snapped up by their city rivals just a year later.
El Mala was then sent back on-loan to Viktoria Koln for the 2024/25 campaign. Following a brilliant season in the German third-tier where he scored 13 goals and registered five assists, he then became an important part of the FC Koln first-team set-up at the beginning of this campaign.
Vincent Kompany’s praise for Said El Mala
El Mala’s progress has not only impressed clubs in the Premier League, but also Bayern Munich manager Vincent Kompany. FC Koln were knocked out of the DFB Pokal by Bayern in October, with the six-time European cup winners triumphing 4-1.
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However, El Mala’s performance caught the eye of the former Burnley boss, who singled him out for praise post-match. As per Goal, Kompany said: “This kid has this initial acceleration and then a second burst of speed. That surprises many defenders.
“He can shoot from that high speed. That feeling of being inactive and then suddenly launching a full-scale counter-attack is, of course, a quality you can use throughout your entire career.”
Do Newcastle United need another left winger?
Whilst Newcastle United fans will be excited at seeing their club being linked with one of the most exciting young players in Europe, there will always be the question of whether they need another left winger or not. Harvey Barnes currently has that position sewn up, but it’s likely that he and Anthony Gordon will once again battle for a starting spot next season if the club signs an out-and-out striker.
Of course, one of Gordon or Barnes could leave this summer which would open up a gap that needs to be filled and El Mala may well be the man they pick to plug that gap. But it seems that unless one of those two are let go, then adding yet another left-winger to their ranks may not be the wisest way to spend their money this summer.
Competition from Chelsea also poses another difficulty for the Magpies who saw both Liam Delap and Joao Pedro opt for a move to Stamford Bridge rather than St James’ Park last summer.
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