Balogun is hot, as the name suggests. Sunday evening at the Parc des Princes, the young striker from the Stade de Reims, erased Donnarumma with a kidney blow on his right, and sent a ball to obtain the draw at the end of additional time (1-1, 90th + 6 ). Wednesday evening, he outdid himself at the Auguste-Delaune stadium in front of Lorient (4-2) while the Rémois were trailing 2-0, signing a hat-trick in 20 minutes (completed by a goal from Kamory Doumbia), his first in the League 1: penalty, half-volley with the right foot and resumption in motion with the left foot millimeter.
One plus three which makes fourteen… Here is Folarin Balogun, 21, at the top of the Ligue 1 scorer rankings, ahead of Mbappé (13), Moffi, Neymar, David and other Ben Yedder. Of the five major European championships, this “2001” is temporarily at the top of the scorers born in the 21st century…
“I have already reached my goal for the start of the season, it makes sense to want to do better and to hope to score 20 goals,” said the young goleador in Paris on Sunday evening, author of just over 50% of the goals. Reims goals so far (14/26).
“We’ve been saying it for two, three months, he’s a super complete striker,” said Will Still, the Anglo-Belgian coach from Reims. He has depth, he is able to play with his back to goal, his technique is very clean, and he doesn’t need many chances to score a goal. He has a certain lucidity because it’s difficult to score a penalty when you’re down 2-0, Still added on Wednesday night. He chooses the power and he is super well hit. As for the other two, they are of exceptional quality. It shows the striker he is, it also shows the character he is. »
Folarin Balogun is a Gunner and not half of one. Born in New York to Nigerian parents, Folarin was raised in London from early childhood. He holds American, Nigerian and British passports and in theory could opt for either selection. In practice, the hopeful English international, 11 caps, 6 goals, seems on track to become a Three Lions in the long term.
He started in a neighborhood club in the east of the English capital. He passed tests at Tottenham but joined Arsenal when he was 8 years old, never to leave the club. “Arsenal is my family, confided the young man, who turned pro at the end of 2020 with the Gunners and who has just extended his contract with the current Premier League leader until June 2025, in an interview with L’Equipe in october. I learned to always push my limits. What I remember from my training is the constant desire to make us progress technically. For example, we had to control the ball for 45 minutes without ever letting it fall to the ground. Thierry Henry, “the Legend”, who sometimes coached us, taught us that technical quality is the basis of everything. The more we have, the more time we have to decide what to do with the ball and see before the others…”
What a passage in Ligue 1
But before becoming a gunner in his own right, the young pro was sent to harden himself away from the theater of operations. He made a few appearances for Arsenal at the end of 2020, played a handful of Europa League games and then played the first two Premier League games for the Gunners last season. After which, he was loaned to Middlesbrough (2nd level) for the second part of the season (18 games, 3 goals), then finally to Reims, this summer until June. A unique opportunity for a club of such modest caliber, made possible by the address book and the Champagne know-how.
In parallel with large European teams, Reims indeed followed Balogun from the U18s where the latter sparked and had applied for a purchase, in vain. Last summer, however, thanks to good relations with the player’s agent, Jean-Pierre Caillot’s club convinced Balogun, his entourage and Arsenal that Champagne was the best destination for a loan, in terms of time. gaming in particular. Even the colors of the Stade de Reims match those of Arsenal.
In Ligue 1, the baby Gunner was quick to validate on the pre the advisability of a stay across the Channel. During the first three days this season, Folarin scored against OM (1-4), then against Clermont (2-4) and Strasbourg (1-1). No one had done this in the French championship since 1975…
It will be understood, Balogun is only passing through. This does not prevent him from taking two French lessons a week. “He manages to communicate with his partners with a smile or sometimes a single word,” says Still, bilingual English-French. He is a very good player, but his French is broken…”
Next outing of the phenomenon in Auxerre, Sunday, 3 p.m. Abbé-Deschamps, pray for the AJA…