European giants table £34 million offer to sign Arsenal striker Folarin Balogun – Reports
Inter Milan have reportedly put forward a £34 million proposal to sign Arsenal star Folarin Balogun in the ongoing summer transfer window.
Balogun, 22, has emerged as a potential summer sale at the Emirates Stadium as he is aiming to secure regular minutes next season. He is said to be keen to build on his stellar campaign spent out on loan at Stade de Reims last time around at a new club this summer.
Last season, the two-cap USA international turned heads with his excellent outings for Reims. He netted 22 goals and laid out three assists in 39 appearances across all competitions for the Ligue 1 outfit.
According to RAI Radio, Inter Milan have approached Mikel Arteta's team with two possible structures to sign Balogun on a permanent deal this summer. Firstly, they have proposed to pay a fee of £34 million in five instalments. Secondly, the Serie A giants have suggested the possibility of an initial loan transfer containing a purchase obligation.
Meanwhile, the Nerazzurri have also worked out a five-year contract for the highly rated Arsenal striker. They have formulated a deal worth around £3 million net per campaign for the New York-born attacker.
Balogun, whose current contract is set to expire in June 2025, initially shot to fame due to his stellar outings in age-group matches for Arsenal. He scored a whopping 75 goals and contributed 18 assists in 103 combined U21 and U18 appearances for the Gunners.
Last week, Simone Inzaghi's side reportedly decided to cool their interest in Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku. They were said to be furious after being informed of talks between the Belgian star and Serie A rivals Juventus, according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.
Ligue 1 outfit backed to sign Arsenal striker
In his column for Caught Offside, journalist Jonathan Johnson asserted that Lille could push to rope in Folarin Balogun this summer. He wrote:
"One club who might be worth keeping an eye on would be Lille – if they're able to cash in on Jonathan David this summer, which would probably be for a similar price tag, it wouldn't surprise me at all if they were to look into Folarin Balogun's situation at the Emirates."
Issuing a warning about Arsenal's high asking price, Johnson added:
"Arsenal's reported £50 million asking price is a lot. He's essentially only had one really good prolific season.
"Don't get me wrong... he's an exciting talent and I think there will be more to come from him at club level and also with the US national team. But, £50 million now seems steep and will almost certainly prohibit a return to Ligue 1."
Balogun, who helped Reims finish in 11th place in the 2022-23 Ligue 1 standings, scored 21 league goals last season. Jonathan David, on the other hand, netted 24 times for Lille in the same number of matches.
According to L'Equipe, Tottenham Hotspur have identified David as a top choice to replace Bayern Munich-linked Harry Kane this summer. They have been informed to pay £52 million to snap up the Canadian.