Arsenal to consider January loan move for first-team youngster

Arsenal will loan out Folarin Balogun in the January transfer window if he continues to struggle for playing time, according to Football London.

The 18-year-old broke into the Arsenal first team last season and signed a long-term contract to remain at the club.

He started their first league game of this season against Brentford in a show of confidence from Mikel Arteta who was missing Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

However, he has since struggled for playing time and is even behind Eddie Nketiah in the pecking order at the moment.

Arsenal knows his development needs more game time and the Gunners would sanction a move away for him if Arteta cannot find space to fit him in his team.

Balogun had several suitors in England and abroad when his previous contract was running down at Arsenal.

The Gunners will hope some of them return to sign him on loan in the winter transfer window.

They will prioritise sending him to a club where he can get the game time he cannot get at the Emirates. 

This could see him leave the country or drop down divisions to the Championship because he is unlikely to get minutes at a Premier League club.