Tottenham have not yet made a concrete move for the player, but fresh speculation has now emerged linking him with Borussia Dortmund, who are searching for attacking reinforcements ahead of the new campaign.
According to Express, citing sources close to Dortmund, the club's hierarchy are working on what has been described as a creative package to land El Mala.
The proposal is said to involve a fee of €30m plus €5m in bonuses, along with a sell-on clause.
El Mala has emerged as one of the most sought-after young attacking talents in the Bundesliga following an impressive breakthrough campaign in Cologne, where his pace and directness have drawn comparisons with some of Germany's most promising recent forwards.
Two loan players are also reported to be included as part of any deal, among them left-back Almugera Kabar, 20.
A condition of any such move is understood to be the departure of Dortmund winger Karim Adeyemi, 24, who has a year remaining on his contract this summer.
Even if Adeyemi leaves, it remains to be seen whether Cologne would be open to accepting a transfer structured in that way.
Köln's finance chief Philipp Türoff recently made clear that the club has no intention of moving away from its €50m valuation of the player.
Manchester United and Brighton have also been credited with interest in El Mala in recent weeks, with the teenager's combination of pace and end product making him one of the most closely tracked young attackers in German football this summer.
For context, Express had already reported several days earlier that TSG Hoffenheim had made a concrete approach for El Mala, though the Bundesliga club themselves dismissed that report as untrue.
Despite the denial, Express maintains that such thoughts could plausibly have existed within the Hoffenheim camp.
One factor that could favour Dortmund is the wishes of El Mala's mother, Sandra, who is said to be keen for her sons to remain close together in Germany, ideally with his older brother Malek, 21, also included in any deal.
Malek could continue playing in the Regionalliga West with Dortmund's second team if such an arrangement were agreed.
Dortmund coach Niko Kovac has also cut short his holiday to discuss a number of important transfer matters with the club's sporting leadership, with El Mala reportedly among the topics under discussion as the club weighs up its options across the forward line this summer.