Arsenal rocked as Inter ‘intensify contacts’ for £30m target who’s suddenly their first choice again
Folarin Balogun playing for Arsenal in pre-season
Inter have revived their pursuit of Arsenal striker Folarin Balogun and are now aiming to seal the deal for under £30million, according to an Italian reporter.
Balogun is a major target for Inter after impressing on loan at Reims last season. He isn’t too keen to sit on the bench back at Arsenal and even an injury to Gabriel Jesus might not open up a space for him.
Indeed, at a press conference on Friday, manager Mikel Arteta said: “The plan with Flo doesn’t change at all. But unfortunately, with Gabby, we’re not going to have him. We have other options to play with different qualities of players, so we will adapt.”
Arsenal have set a high asking price for Balogun this summer, which could be up to £50m. Given the costs of the deal, it was recently inferred that Inter would be focusing on other targets.
They entered the bidding for Gianluca Scamacca, but the West Ham striker is now set to join Atalanta instead after their superior offer.
And in response, Inter have made a strong move back towards Balogun, according to SportItalia reporter Alfredo Pedulla.
Pedulla has claimed that Inter have ‘intensified contacts with Arsenal’ for Balogun, who was always their first choice over alternatives such as Scamacca.
In fact, they saw Scamacca as an opportunity to add a second new striker to their squad in case Joaquin Correa leaves. Theoretically, he would have complemented Balogun, rather than replaced him on the wish list.
Therefore, they have come back in strongly for Balogun, who only has two years remaining on his contract at Arsenal.
There is a sense that the Champions League runners up could ‘finalise’ the deal soon – and potentially for a lower sum than expected. Indeed, they are aiming to wrap up the signing of Balogun for £30m or less, according to Pedulla.
The two clubs are in discussions, with Inter aiming to reach a conclusion soon.
Balogun to become part of evolving Inter attack?
Inter have already lost a couple of attackers after Romelu Lukaku’s loan spell from Chelsea ended (he is now controversially trying to join Juventus) and Edin Dzeko joined Fenerbahce on a free transfer.
Balogun has never played in Serie A before, but his Ligue 1 spell last season proved his adaptability. Therefore, Inter are putting their faith in the USMNT star – and Arsenal might finally be ready to cave in.
For Reims, Balogun scored 22 goals in 39 appearances last season. Earlier in his career, he scored twice from 10 Arsenal appearances and three times from 21 games on loan at Middlesbrough.
One factor Balogun may have to consider is a language barrier. In France, he benefitted from being managed by Will Still, who could clearly communicate in English.
In contrast, Inter boss Simone Inzaghi is not deemed to be particularly proficient in English, so Balogun would have to make more of an effort to get up to speed in Italian in order to understand the demands that would be placed upon him at San Siro.
Nevertheless, things seem to be heading in the right direction for Balogun to join Inter, at least according to the perspective in Italy.
