‘Very good’… Arsenal told striker they sold for £25.7m is ‘a strong runner’

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One of the players Arsenal offloaded last summer was Folarin Balogun, and his USA international teammate Ricardo Pepi seems to rate him highly.

Ricardo Pepi has been raving about Folarin Balogun, who joined AS Monaco from Arsenal in the summer of 2023.

According to Sky Sports, Monaco paid Arsenal an initial £25.7 million in transfer fees for Balogun, who struggled to make an impact at the Gunners and had a loan spell at French club Stade de Reims last season.

Praise for former Arsenal striker Folarin Balogun

Now 22, Balogun had been on the books of Arsenal since he was 10 years of age and came through the North London club’s youth academy.

Balogun plays with Pepi for the USA national football team, and the PSV striker has spoken highly of the former Arsenal player.

Pepi told The Athletic about Balogun: “We have different profiles of strikers. 

“We have (Folarin) Balogun for starters, who is very good, a strong runner, and then maybe I’m more of a physical profile.”

My View: Arsenal are not missing Folarin Balogun

In my opinion, Arsenal are not missing Folarin Balogun at all. While there are talks that the Gunners need to sign a quality number 9 in the summer transfer window, I do not think that Balogun would have been of much help to the Gunners now.

Balogun is a good striker and is only 22 now. He has played eight times for the USA national football team and has scored three goals.

The youngster is clearly talented, but he is not at the level yet to guide Arsenal to Premier League success.

Yes, the striker did extremely well during his loan spell at Reims last season, but his under-par performances first at Middlesbrough and now at AS Monaco underline how much development he still needs to undergo.

During his loan spell at Middlesbrough, Balogun scored three goals and gave three assists in nine starts and nine substitute appearances in the Championship.

The striker scored 21 goals and gave two assists in 34 Ligue 1 starts for Reims last season, but so far this campaign, he has scored four goals and provided three assists in 12 starts and five substitute appearances in Ligue 1.