Arsenal are facing crunch talks with Folarin Balogun as the striker prepares for a return to the club in the summer.
Balogun has been sensational on loan at French top tier side Reims on loan this season, netting 19 goals in all competitions in his breakout campaign. The 21-year-old New York native is contracted to the Gunners until the end of the 2024/25 season but will instigate talks with his parent club about his future when the current campaign ends.
Balogun has struggled to break into the Arsenal first-team picture and with Gabriel Jesus, Gabriel Martinelli, Leandro Trossard and Bukayo Saka ahead of him in Mikel Arteta's pecking order. However, Balogun has certainly made a case to be given a chance in pre-season to stake a claim for a place in Arteta's setup.
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The player may well decide to pursue a permanent transfer elsewhere, though, because of how high his profile is after a superb season in France. Indeed, reports on the continent have claimed that Ligue 1 winners Paris Saint-Germain are one of the teams who could consider a move for Balogun.
The CIES Football Observatory values Balogun at around $17million (£13.6million) though Arsenal would likely demand a higher fee for the player. With Arteta's men set for a Champions League return regardless of how the title race pans out, the summer will all be about strengthening for the club.
And sales may have to happen, with Balogun a player who could be earmarked for a potential departure. What is clear, though, is that Arteta is a fan of Balogun and his attitude and ability has caught the eye of the Arsenal boss.
"I'm so happy for him," Arteta said in February. "He's a boy that has a really clear idea of what he wants to do with his career - he's really ambitious, really committed and really brave.
"We discussed a lot before he made that move whether it was the right place to go and the other choices he had and he was so convinced. "I'm really happy for him because he deserves what he's getting.
"When you look at the numbers and what he is doing, it's just incredible. "It's very rare to see that, but he's got something special, that's why we decided to give him a long-term contract and have faith in him and give him the long period that he needs now, because the loan he is having now is really different to the one he had before at Middlesbrough."
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