Arsenal striker Folarin Balogun has been fantastic whilst out on loan this season. The England youth international was sent to Ligue 1 after Eddie Nketiah reached an agreement over a new bumper contract and the club signed Gabriel Jesus from Manchester City.
Despite perhaps some disappointment that after renewing his deal just a year earlier, where the opportunity for more senior action at Arsenal then wasn’t immediately available, Folarin Balogun has taken his loan at Reims in his stride. He currently has 10 goals in the league - the joint-third highest behind only PSG pair Neymar (11) and Kylian Mbappe (13).
With the Gunners on the lookout for forwards during the January window after the injury to Jesus, some have suggested that recalling Balogun could be a solution. Whilst there are no signs of that being something the club are considering at this moment, the player has returned to London Colney in what football.london understands to be a regularity for the club’s loan players and not an indication of a recall.
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France isn’t typically, like much of the continent, a place where young English talents tend to go to develop. This has somewhat changed in recent years with the likes of Jadon Sancho and Jude Bellingham gaining stardom in Germany with Borussia Dortmund, with the former now back in England with Manchester United.
Arsenal have been linked with a move for Bellingham but his future could remain outside of the Premier League with Real Madrid said to be monitoring the young star. Circling back to Arsenal, though, Reiss Nelson is one of the most recent English temporary exports after he spent a year with Hoffenheim in the Bundesliga and another season with Feyenoord in the Netherlands.
Balogun's returns though have seen arguably the best output of any of Arsenal’s homegrown talents to take the plunge outside of British waters. football.london spoke to French football expert Jeremy Smith to get his thoughts on Balogun’s progression whilst out in Ligue 1.
"That Balogun took the decision to go abroad for a season was already commendable, but the way he has taken to Ligue 1 has been fantastic," Smith said. "Leading the line all season for a team that first struggled in a defensive system and has recently been thriving in a more offensive set-up, and maintaining his standards under two different coaches, has been great to see.
"He is joint-third (and only one behind Neymar in second) in the Ligue 1 scoring charts with 10 goals, with all those around him in the charts playing for clubs higher in the table. He has shown that he can run the channels, dribble past players, shoot from mid-distance, be a fox in the box and calmly put away a penalty.
"He is following the [William] Saliba blueprint of using his Ligue 1 experience to state a strong claim to be pushing for a place in Arsenal's starting line-up next season."
It would be fair say if Balogun could return in the summer and have an impact similar to Saliba, Arsenal would truly have a special striker on their hands. That said, the pathway into the Gunners’ first team remains a tricky prospect with Jesus and Nketiah on long term deals and the prospect of a third forward being signed not off the cards.
If this is the case, the benefit for Arsenal is a financial one. Once looking likely to leave for nothing, the Gunners now have a much more serious asset to benefit from in the transfer window at the very minimum.
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