Chelsea have never really been able to replace Eden Hazard. Since the Belgian icon left the club to join Real Madrid in 2019, the club have brought in a number of wingers and tried to come up with a lot of creative solutions. But nothing has really worked so far. Just this summer, they signed Alejandro Garnacho from Manchester United and Jamie Gittens from Borussia Dortmund. Neither has made a bright start to life at Stamford Bridge though.
There have been some bright sparks lately. Gittens won Man of the Match against Ajax. Garnacho scored his first goal for the club against Sunderland. But overall, neither has convinced.
On the other hand, it looks like Chelsea are already keeping an eye out on a German left winger. But he is also on the radar of other top clubs including Manchester United, PSG and more.
He is one of the fastest rising talents in German football right now. As reported by Sport1 (via TEAMtalk), Chelsea, Manchester United, Man City, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and PSG have all made contact with Said El Mala’s camp to gauge the FC Koln winger's interest in a potential move.
Chelsea and Man Utd make contact for in-form German winger
It was just last season that El Mala was playing in the third division on loan at Viktoria Cologne. The talent has never been in question though. The 19-year-old has represented Germany at multiple youth international levels already.
While he did score 13 goals while on loan last season, most people would have expected him to take some time to adjust to life in the top division. That has not been the case.
In seven Bundesliga appearances for FC Koln so far this season, El Mala already has three goals and an assist to his name. And it is not hard to understand why world football's biggest clubs are taking notice.
Is El Mala the solution for Chelsea's problems right now? He would be another high-potential signing expected to come good years down the line. The Blues have plenty of such youngsters at the moment. What they need at the moment is some proven winners.