Here’s an interesting report for fans of both Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal today.
According to Gazzetta dello Sport, Spurs have set their sights on Gunners forward Folarin Balogun.
As we all know, Harry Kane is on the verge of swapping Tottenham for Bayern Munich. Meanwhile, Balogun’s future at Arsenal is uncertain, despite his impressive Reims loan last season.
So, Spurs are looking for a Kane replacement and Balogun appears to be surplus to Gunners requirements.
Gazzetta claims “another name on the Spurs notebook” is Balogun, who has also been linked with Inter Milan.
French outfit AS Monaco are also said to be in the running for the Arsenal forward. The Italian outlet says Spurs would have to pay €55million (around £47.5million) for Balogun. Obviously at first glance it would appear that this move is a non-starter due to Spurs and Arsenal being bitter rivals.
However, rival clubs across the world have been known to trade players, particularly when surplus to requirements at one club.
Tottenham and Arsenal have had their fair share of players crossing the North London divide, though circumstances have varied.
Were it not for the two clubs involved, it would seem like a no-brainer.
Tottenham need a player who can hit the ground running, and Balogun has shown he’s got what it takes at the highest level. Indeed, Goal.com had him in their top 10 signings of 2022-23. Reims certainly struck gold when they signed him on loan.
‘Balogun has been a menace for defences across France with his speed and intelligence in making runs in behind. And he is ruthless in front of goal,’ they wrote.
‘It remains to be seen whether he will get an opportunity under Mikel Arteta at the Emirates Stadium. But he will have plenty of other options if Arsenal decide against bringing him back.’
Arsenal are seemingly willing to sell Balogun, but would they want to strengthen not only their bitter rivals, but also a potential title/top-four rival for next season?
