Eight weeks into the season, there are only two players with more Ligue 1 goals than Folarin Balogun - Kylian Mbappe and Neymar. The Hale Ender continued his fine start to life in France with his sixth goal in eight matches for Stade de Reims as they were held to a 2-2 draw by Troyes over the weekend.
It's quite the turnaround for Balogun who is coming off the back a loan spell with Middlesbrough in the second half of last season that he admitted was frustrating at times. "I'm at the age where it's really important to be playing regularly," the 21-year-old said. "At Middlesbrough it was stop-start, I wasn't playing as much. This season it was important to choose a team where I knew I was able to play and show what I can do."
Even the most optimistic of Arsenal fans would surely have thought such an impressive beginning to his Ligue 1 loan spell was beyond the realms of possibility. For Mikel Arteta however, this has all been part of the plan.
