Brighton made formal, written offer last week – 10x salary on the table for summe

Brighton and Hove Albion are working to push through a deal for Köln forward Saïd El-Mala, and submitted a firm written bid last week.

That’s according to SportBILD. The newspaper cover the forward today and how Brighton may be close to a deal for him after all.

According to their information, a deal for El-Mala is drawing closer and Brighton are leading the charge. The Seagulls submitted a concrete offer to Köln last week. This was in writing.

They’re determined to sign the winger, with Fabian Hürzeler especially keen. He wanted him before he’d even played in the Bundesliga. That led to Brighton’s €15m offer in the summer. They’ve been working on it since. 

Now they have significantly improved their offer. The latest on the table is between €25-30m plus add-ons. It was subsequently rejected but Köln are open to a deal for the summer.

Brighton desperately want El-Mala and want the negotiations over quickly. Köln want to weigh up their options as El-Mala could increase his value in the coming week. But there’s also a risk that it drops as coach Lukas Kwasniok uses him less and less.

Brighton are giving an impression of not giving up either way. A written offer usually serves as a preliminary step to define parameters. They expected the rejection and will build from that.

The most important factor is El Mala himself. He wasn’t thinking about a transfer a few weeks ago but has now changed his mind. He’s indicate to the German club that he’d like to move on. That plays into Brighton’s hands. Köln could also use the money to buy six loaned players and strengthen further beyond that.

El-Mala is particularly keen as Brighton are offering him €15m a year plus bonuses in wages. The most he can earn at Köln is €1.5m a year, and that’s depending on his success. Brighton is simply on another scale.

Bundesliga clubs can’t compete. SportBILD say that even Bayern Munich wouldn’t be inclined to offer a €50m package for the player.

There’s also a personal factor. Brighton have indicated they’ll sign El-Mala’s brother Malek as well. The pair have played their entire careers together and Brighton are happy to let that continue.

The Seagulls seems determined to do whatever it takes to get this one over the line. That includes convincing Saïd, with a big pay packet and his brother coming too. More negotiations are on the way.