The Cloud Surrounding Folarin Balogun

How did it come to this? Folarin Balogun is a player Arsenal fans have been excited about for a long time, but at the start of the year things fell apart behind the scenes, culminating in the striker refusing to sign the new contract put before him. Both player and club remain tight-lipped about the current situation, however the writing on the wall suggests Balogun's journey in North London has come to an end.

News came from The Beautiful game podcast this week that an impressive cohort of clubs had significant interest in acquiring Balogun from Arsenal. The likes of Southampton, Brighton, Stuttgart, Werder Bremen, Eintracht Frankfurt, PSV, AC Milan and Roma are all circling round the uncertainty of the England Youth internationals future.

The Athletic reporter David Ornstein has been clear Arsenal do not want to lose one of their best prospects cheaply and have slapped an £8m price-tag on the young striker. Arsenal are also in the position where player sales are important in helping to fund other moves. A lot of fans will want a buy-back clause inserted into any deal, however that wont happen if Arsenal continue to insist on receiving a high fee. The fee itself may prove a stumbling block for some of the clubs, however there is a chain of thought that the closer it gets towards the end of the window Arsenal could lower the price. It will be an interesting game of wills that may go to the line.

So why didn't Balogun renew his contract with the Gunners? It appears the New York born striker wanted more assurances that he would receive first team opportunities. Subsequently it seems Arsenal weren't willing to give such guarantees given the number of options they have in that position. The relationship between Club and player began to turn sour when the Premier League restarted in July, Folarin was not one of the young players that was called up to train with the first team, nor has he featured in any pre-season games. This is a tactic Arsenal have used before with young players who wouldn't commit to new deals, Vontae Daley-Campbell and Josh Dasilva were both denied opportunities and ended up leaving the club. One could argue Bukayo Saka and Reiss Nelson were once both in similar contractual situations, however there was always good feeling between the camps that deals could be struck. Things haven't looked as positive for the U23s goalscorer.

It is likely other clubs have been aware of the contract issues for a while, Brentford came in with a bid of £5m in January which was quickly turned down. Arsenal are clearly very reluctant to sell, is there a chance he stays? It feels unlikely, on the outside things look happy, he turned up for U23s training and has already scored in a friendly against Spurs, but Balogun staying in the U23s and leaving for free next season suits nobody. He's an ambitious player who believes he can make the step up in levels now and Arsenal cant afford to let such a prize asset leave for nothing.

So just how good is he? well he has all the tools to be a complete striker, technically sound and a dangerous finisher with both feet. His pace and acceleration allows him to run in behind defenders to devastating effect but he is also equally adept with his direct dribbling, this allows him to run the channels well and commit defenders into areas they don't like to be. He'll look to improve himself as more of an aerial threat and also his hold up play, but he is a player who has skillset to adapt to the highest level.

Balogun joined Arsenal at the age of 10, his family came to live in England after spending time living in America. The 19-year old has been a prolific scorer at youth level scoring 50 goals in 70 games for the U18s and U23s. Very few players playing in those leagues at the same time were able to match such figures including the likes of Mason Greenwood and Rhian Brewster. Folarin may have another decision to make about his future soon, as he qualifies to play for England, Nigeria and USMNT, he has played some games for the latter but has most recently been playing for England U19.

This situation feels like a consequence of having such a good academy, things can become crowded quickly and the pathway that once looked so clear now looks blurry. Of course, Aubameyang and Lacazette are the main strikers in North London. It felt for a long time the position of understudy to them was up for grabs, but those opportunities were taken last season by Gabriel Martinelli and Eddie Nketiah who impressed with their contributions. Tyreece John-Jules is also highly thought of and committed to a long term deal. So from Balogun's perspective he may just be wondering where he would get a look in and it may go some way to explaining why Arsenal couldn't convince him.

This is a modern casualty for big Academies, its happening at all the big clubs, many young players seeing the success of Jadon Sancho, have become more ambitious and less patient in waiting for their chances. Man City have recently lost a talented prodigy in Charlie McNeil. Chelsea lost Jamal Musiala to Bayern who made his debut after the Bundesliga restart. Chelsea have also lost Samual Illing Jnr to Juventus. These are all blows that sting just as much as Balogun leaving North London.

Arsenal will no doubt face criticism for letting go of a player with such potential, its possible we are going to be reminded of it in the same fashion we are every time Serge Gnabry scores a goal, but my take of the situation with both players is the same. If Folarin Balogun truly does wish to leave then we should respect this and wish him luck on his way. We have some very good forwards at our club and you cant keep everyone happy. I'll look back fondly with the role we played in his development and the good times he's had at the club just like I do with Gnabry.

This is the evolution of young players who want to emulate the success of Mbappe and Sancho, who are we to tell them to wait their turn, if their fate lies away from the club then its a new opportunity someone else. John-Jules is a player its impossible not to admire but a young player named Khayon Edwards may also soon emerge.

 - Next Generation Arsenal

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