To say that Folarin Balogun has hit the ground running in France, would be an understatement after his lightning start to life in Ligue 1.
The 21-year-old joined Stade de Reims on a season-long loan from Arsenal and has been the shining light for his side in his first two months with Les Rouges et Blancs.
His six goals and two assists in nine league games, not only places him at the top of his side’s top scorer’s list, but it also places him joint third in Ligue 1’s top scorers, only behind PSG’s duo of mercurial talents, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, and one goal ahead of legendary attacker Lionel Messi.
Since moving to the North of France this summer, Balogun is mixing it up with the best of them, but there have been some notable improvements in his game which people should be starting to become aware of.
The Balogun Hype Train
When he came through the Arsenal youth academy, his talents were clear to see, and his goal record acted as evidence to the hype he so richly deserved.
75 goals in 103 appearances for Arsenal’s various youth teams, an incredible rate of a goal every 0.7 games, helped him establish himself as one of the most exciting prospects to graduate from the famed Hale End academy in recent years.
Arsenal fans were jubilant in April 2021 when the then 20-year-old ended mounting transfer speculation and signed a new long-term deal at the club, a contract that will keep him at the club until June 2025.
He went on loan to Championship club Middlesborough last season, and despite some bright sparks and positive performances during his five-month stay at the club, he was unable to properly showcase his undeniable talents at the Riverside Stadium.
However, he is now thriving in France and is beginning to draw attention with his impressive and mature performances at the Stade Auguste Delaune.
Getting better and better
Despite only being five foot nine inches tall, Balogun is a very strong player, who is getting better and better at using his body to shield the ball and roll defenders.
The England youth international is also a great linkup striker, and once outmuscling a defender, is adept at bringing others into play with his creativity and timing of pass.
Balogun, who is also of Nigerian and American descent, in addition to being a strong and creative forward, is also a fantastic dribbler and his numbers so far this season support this fact.
When compared to the current six top scorers in Ligue 1 this season, he ranks second in terms of highest dribble success percentage, with his 47% dribble success only being bettered by Lille’s Jonathan David.
From his days in the Arsenal youth academy to now, he has always drifted to the left-wing in an Aubameyang-esque manner or dropped into deeper positions to get the ball and get involved in build play when he feels isolated up front, and when he gets on the ball he can easily dribble past defenders and get into dangerous positions.
In addition to his dribbling ability, the 21-year-old also has an impressive array of skills in his weaponry, that he uses in times of need.
Sombrero flicks, nutmegs and even a rabona cross against Strasbourg in August; Balogun is not shy of using tricks to beat defenders and dazzle audiences.
Finally, and most importantly, the Reims forward knows how to put the ball in the back of the net, and he has done so his whole career.
He just has that natural ability of always being in the right place at the right time, and his fantastic positioning, poachers instinct and clinical finishing helps him score a range of different types of goals.
At the time of writing, he has recorded an outstanding rate of 0.75 xG per 90 minutes, an xG accumulation that not only betters Neymar’s 0.73 but is only bettered in Ligue 1 by Mbappe’s 0.98.
This is the company he is keeping at the moment, and his immediate success in France must have come as a surprise to everyone back in North London.
If he manages to continue this impressive goalscoring rate, he will end the season with a remarkable tally of 26 league goals and with Mbappe topping the Ligue 1 top scorer charts last season with 28 league goals, you can see just how well the Arsenal loanee is playing right now.
He is quickly establishing himself as one of Europe’s most promising frontmen, and soon may start to give Arsenal manager, Mikel Arteta, and even England manager, Gareth Southgate, a selection headache.
Twitter: @NnamdiOnye
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