Folarin Balogun‘s future at Arsenal appears to be on the rocks at present, and the latest decisions of the club will not have helped the situation.
The forward was left out of the squad for the FA Cup clash with Newcastle yesterday, with Eddie Nketiah sitting on the bench instead, making clear that he is behind his rival despite his impressive displays for the senior side this term.
Eddie was linked with an exit however, with West Ham claimed to be keen on bringing him in to replace Sebastian Haller who has since joined Ajax.
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Fabrizio Romano insists that Arsenal have zero intention on parting ways with Nketiah however.
Arsenal have no intention of selling Eddie Nketiah to West Ham in January. #whufc are looking for a replacement of Sebastien Haller but Arsenal are expected to keep Nketiah. ⚪️🔴 #afc
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 10, 2021
Having been overlooked for the FA Cup squad, and with Nketiah set to stay beyond the current window, it would be pretty safe to assume that Balogun will likely refuse to extend his playing contract in North London, which is set to expire this summer.
The manager Mikel Arteta insisted earlier in the week in a press conference that both the player and the club want to agree terms on a new deal, but that the agent is an issue currently, and he is unlikely to have been persuaded by the latest events surrounding his client.
Should Arsenal have considered loaning out Nketiah and giving Balogun a shot at playing as the deputy for Laca/Aubz?
Patrick
If Balogun’s 3-4-5 year decisions can be influenced by a day’s events, then maybe we should not keep him. That’s not how someone with a future views events. Thank God this article is not a direct representation of him or he’d be guaranteed to fail in life.
Is he not too young to be forcing the club for guarantees. I good player waits for his chance and impresses to keep his place. Let your gift and skills create room for you. That is what ESR has just done.
Loan ore sell nketia and give Florian Balogun the Chanse and Arsenal wont regreat it=100 true.Balogun is a better spiss then nketia in every way.
It’s pretty transparent to these eyes that Willock,
Nelson and Nkietah all need to be loaned out for
the balance of the season if the club truly sees
merit in there futures @ Arsenal. The likes of
Balogun, Ayeez, Cottrel, Tyrece Jones etc are
knocking on the proverbial door and deserve the
same opportunities in the first team set up IMHO.
In regards to FB, if the agent is in fact poisoning the
proceedings than the club may be forced to
reluctantly move him on. Unfortunate but if the
youngsters head has been turned than AFC must
do what’s best for the club,
him on
If Balogun has confidence in his own ability ,a perceived pecking order should not influence him one way or another.Nketiah has been given opportunities and has not taken them in my view, and in the case of Auba and Laca they may well be past their best within the next year or two.Add to that, the hugely talented Martinelli appears to be injury prone which is another positive in considering all the pros and cons.To me the most concerning aspect of this issue is the apparent failure of our Management team to make these points and to convince Balogun that he has a real future at Arsenal.
Nice comment Grandad, can’t find any disagreement. Agents work for players, and if Balogun wants to stay he should do so and bide his time.
He will outplay an underachieving Nketiah 2 years his senior in a short time, and will be well positioned for rotation and opportunities to deliver.
He clearly has the 1st touch and composure Nketiah lacks, and shows flashes of assisting teammates and creating for himself.
The real flaw I see in his game is patience. Although talented, he’s nowhere near Saka or Martinelli, and it’s difficult for a 19 yr old to crack the 1st team of Arsenal; especially with Auba, Laca, and Martinelli in front of him.
Exactly,
The agent seems to think he has a Mpambe or young Mesi. Does he really think BF should replace Laca and Auba right now?
Leaving Arsenal to a team like Swansea to me is a mistake. He may never rise up to prominance again. You may be good but it depends on players around you, without good players your standards fall and you are forgotten.