Sources: Folarin Balogun won’t play for Arsenal next season – unless guaranteed first XI spot
Folarin Balogun does not want to return to Arsenal next season unless he is guaranteed first-team minutes, sources have told Football Insider.
The 21-year-old was sent out on loan to Ligue Un side Reims this season after struggling to break into Mikel Arteta’s first-team plans at The Emirates.
Balogun has attracted plenty of interest while out on loan and would prefer a permanent move away to secure more minutes rather than fight with the likes of Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah for a starting spot at Arsenal.
Balogun has scored 18 league goals for Reims this season, putting him behind only Kylian Mbappe and Jonathan David in the Ligue Un scoring charts.
Arsenal are keen to hold on to Balogun and are currently in talks with the player and his representatives to try and convince him to stay at the club next season.
The Gunners have not ruled out offering Balogun a new and improved contract to reward him if he chooses to stay put in North London next season.
Balogun’s current contract runs until 2025 after he signed a four-year deal with Arsenal in 2021.
Balogun has spent the entirety of his career with the Gunners after rising through the ranks of Arsenal’s academy and signing his first professional contract in 2019.
He had to wait only a year before being handed his first-team debut in 2020, but Balogun still only has 10 senior Arsenal appearances to his name after three years in the first team.
Arsenal decided to loan Balogun out to gain experience, and prior to his successful spell at Reims this season, Balogun spent six months at Championship side Middlesbrough in 2021/22 where he scored just three goals in 21 appearances.
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