Said El Mala: The Köln Winger Poised for Germany's National Team

On a damp Saturday night in Cologne, as the noise from a 1–1 draw with Werder Bremen still hung in the air, Lothar Matthäus went straight to the point.

“He is definitely a player for Jürgen Klopp,” he told Sky, speaking about Said El Mala. “He would also have been a player for Julian Nagelsmann.”

A pointed line. And a reminder of a story that has been simmering for months.

The talent Germany left at home

Nagelsmann was the first to pull El Mala into the senior orbit, calling him up for Germany in November 2025 after his rapid rise with Köln. The winger had already impressed with the Under-21s – seven caps, one goal – and looked on the verge of a breakthrough.

Then came the World Cup squad. And the snub.

El Mala did not make the final list. The omission raised eyebrows at the time. It looked even stranger when 18-year-old Lennart Karl of Bayern Munich suffered a serious injury before the tournament. A door opened. El Mala still didn’t walk through it. Assan Ouedraogo of RB Leipzig, then 20, got the call instead.

Matthäus has never been shy about his opinions, and he has one for this too. He does not believe the decision was driven by footballing reasons.

“Maybe he didn't take him because there would have been too much fuss around him,” Matthäus suggested. “But that's exactly what we need. A player like him with this pace uses his strengths. He has strengths that you need to be right at the top.”

A fuss. A spark. A player who unsettles games and opponents. Matthäus sees that as a necessity, not a problem.

Turbulent summer, sharp start

The past summer only added layers to El Mala’s profile.

There was the supposed rejected move to FC Brentford. Interest from Borussia Dortmund. Then, against that backdrop, a surprise contract extension in Cologne. For a player still waiting for his senior Germany debut, his name travelled far.

He answered the noise in the simplest way a forward can. On the opening matchday of the Bundesliga season, El Mala scored in a 2–1 win over Hoffenheim. Direct, dangerous, decisive.

His momentum stalled briefly. Illness ruled him out of the 4–1 defeat at Stuttgart. Carrying a knock, he started on the bench against Werder Bremen, only coming on for the final 15 minutes.

Even in a short cameo, his presence changes the mood around Köln. Coach Rene Wagner made it clear that the national team remains a target, and a realistic one.

“He has already been involved,” Wagner said of El Mala’s DFB prospects. “There has not yet been any exchange. Said now wants to perform in order to put himself forward. Unfortunately from the bench today, but we have great hope that he gives us plenty of energy.”

Teammate Linton Maina, who scored Köln’s goal against Bremen, put it more bluntly. With El Mala, he said, “a rocket is still coming off the bench.”

Köln sit 11th in the table with four points. One more league game, away at Hamburger SV, and then the first international break of the season arrives. For El Mala, that is where the story could change.

On Thursday, Jürgen Klopp names his first Germany squad.

Klopp’s blueprint and the El Mala question

According to Sky, Klopp is ready to back El Mala. The new national coach is said to see significant potential in the Köln winger and wants to involve him from the very start of his tenure.

The hints were already there in Klopp’s inaugural press conference at the end of July. He made it clear that fresh faces would be welcomed. He also underlined the importance of wide players in his system.

“Because every opponent can make the pitch very narrow. The only advantage you have is for a brief moment out wide. The playmakers of the modern era are out wide,” Klopp said.

That sentence might as well have had El Mala’s name written underneath it.

From an attacking standpoint, El Mala appears made for Klopp’s football: explosive pace, sharp dribbling, a straight-line drive towards goal. He plays forward, not sideways. He commits defenders. He stretches games.

But Klopp’s Germany will not be built on flair alone. Counter-pressing remains non-negotiable. El Mala’s ability to hunt the ball, to react instantly when possession is lost, will weigh heavily in the final decision.

A first test of Klopp’s courage

Germany’s schedule gives Klopp no gentle introduction. The Nations League opens with a trip to Amsterdam to face the Netherlands on 24 September. Three days later comes his first home game in Augsburg against Greece. Serbia follow in Munich on 1 October, then Greece again in Thessaloniki on 4 October.

High-profile fixtures. High scrutiny. And a fanbase hungry for something – and someone – new.

Matthäus has made his stance clear. Köln have nailed their colours to El Mala. Sky report that Klopp is leaning in the same direction.

On Thursday, the list will drop. One name will tell Germany a lot about how bold its new era intends to be. Will Jürgen Klopp really hand the keys of the wing to a “rocket” from Köln – or will Said El Mala be left waiting at the door once again?