Folarin Balogun is one of OM’s ways to strengthen the attacking sector while Marcelino wants to play in 4-4-2, which requires at least two recruits on the attacking front during the summer transfer window.
For the moment, Olympique de Marseille has only one striker (Vitinha) in its workforce, it may be light to play in 4-4-2, the preferred system of new coach Marcelino. In this position, the priority is unsurprisingly called Alexis Sanchez, at the end of his contract with OM and who has been negotiating a contract extension for several months. Basically, the two parties agree to extend the adventure, especially since the Chilean was reassured by the signing of Geoffrey Kondogbia and the intentions of the Marseille club on the transfer market.
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But for the moment, the negotiations are blocked by the reality of the figures and a slight disagreement on the future salary of Alexis Sanchez at OM. In the offensive sector, even if El Nino Maravilla were to stay, it would be necessary to recruit two more attackers to count four and thus be completely comfortable for Marcelino’s 4-4-2. In this position, a player pleases Pablo Longoria and Javier Ribalta enormously. This is Folarin Balogun, author of 21 goals in Ligue 1 during his loan to Reims in 2022-2023.
Arsenal demand 50 ME for Folarin Balogun
Back at Arsenal, the American international is not part of Mikel Arteta’s plans. The Gunners want to take advantage of Balogun’s full season in the French championship to sell him at a good price and Marseille have positioned themselves. The price set by Arsenal nevertheless risks making this track impossible for the Marseille leaders since according to information from Sky Sports, Arsenal hopes to recover 50 million euros from the sale of Folarin Balogun during the summer transfer window. At this price, there is no doubt that Pablo Longoria will not line up, despite a real desire from OM to bet on the 22-year-old striker. It now remains to be seen whether the boss of Olympique de Marseille, who has excellent relations with the staff of Arsenal, will manage to lower the price of the invoice to offer a scorer steeped in talent and extremely promising to Marcelino.
