Arsenal are still working on the signing of David Raya, but a big outgoing is also still on the club’s list. As The Top Flight had previously reported, Italian side Inter was looking to sign Arsenal’s Folarin Balogun. Those talks then went quiet, and Inter emerged as favourites to sign West Ham’s Gianluca Scamacca, but now the Italian striker is headed to Atalanta. Somewhat unexpectedly, Inter are now expected to shift their interest back to Folarin Balogun.
Fabrizio Romano reports that Inter are circling back to sign Arsenal’s Folarin Balogun. Discussions are expected to pick up again, and Balogun is regarded as Inter’s favourite choice for the striker position. Tuttosport suggests that Inter will be coming in with a £30m bid that includes add-ons. It’s not yet been reported what Arsenal sees as a sufficient enough bid, but that proposal in itself is a big one for Folarin Balogun. It’s hard to say how far along negotiations may be at this point, but the Arsenal forward may have dropped a hint.
https://twitter.com/EduardoHagn/status/1687853816543064064?s=20
Via Instagram Story, Balogun has posted a clip of him watching Ronaldo Nazario highlights, in an Inter jersey. Ronaldo played some of his best football at Inter, winning his first Ballon d’Or with the club in 1997. He scored 59 goals in just 99 games with I Nerazzurri. Perhaps Balogun is just sharing his admiration of the player himself, but it is an interesting time to post it nonetheless.
Folarin Balogun netted 22 goals across all competitions last year with Stade Reims in Ligue 1 on loan from Arsenal. Balogun has made his way up through Arsenal’s academy system and has ten senior appearances to date. He is also now a USMNT international, after committing to the US this summer. He scored in the most recent CONCACAF Nations League Final against Canada en route to the USMNT, lifting the NL Trophy.