Millwall have managed to agree a new contract with forward Abdul Abdulmalik with the 18-year-old committing his immediate future to the Lions, according to News at Den.
Abdulmalik’s situation at Millwall became something of a real saga during the summer transfer window, with the forward initially rejecting the offer of a new deal by the Lions as he looked to assess his other potential options.
There was interest from a number of other clubs following Abdulmalik’s promising development in Millwall’s youth setup. That led to trials for the forward at both Premier League Southampton and Watford before they decided against offering the 18-year-old a contract.
Love the EFL? Want to share your opinions about your club? Get involved by subscribing to FLW TV on Youtube HERE!
It was also reported that Swansea City had also submitted an offer to Millwall for the forward’s services, but that approach was turned down by the Lions.
According to the latest report from News at Den, Millwall have now finally managed to agree terms over a new contract with Abdulmalik. The 18-year-old has signed a new 12 month deal with the club that also includes the option of a further year.
The verdict
This is a major potential agreement for Millwall to have reached with Abdulmalik and it will serve to at the very least protect one of the Lions’ best assets at the moment that they have emerging through their youth ranks.
It had seemed almost inevitable that Abdulmalik would be set to leave Millwall during the summer transfer window, with a host of clubs interested and with the forward having decided to initially reject the Lions’ offer of a new contract.
However, he was unable to convince either Watford or Southampton to hand him a deal in the summer during trial periods with the Premier League duo. That would have reminded the 18-year-old how much work he still has to do in terms of his development to reach the level where he can move to a top-flight side.
Abdulmalik has a lot of potential and he will now need to work hard on his game with the under-23s at Millwall and try and convince Gary Rowett that he can eventually become a key first-team player for the Lions.