Folarin Balogun’s valuation in 2024
The player in question is former Arsenal striker Folarin Balogun, who burst onto the scene in the 22/23 season while on loan with Ligue 1 side Stade Reims.
In 39 appearances for the French side, the “unbelievable” American marksman, as dubbed by sports presenter Jules Breach, scored a whopping 22 goals and provided three assists, maintaining an average of a goal involvement every 1.56 games.
However, it was clear that he did not want to return to North London to sit on the bench, so when the summer rolled around, the club sold him to AS Monaco for £35m, which is a brilliant fee for a striker from the academy who had made just ten appearances for the club in total
Moreover, Edu and Co made the sale at the perfect time, as while he wasn’t terrible for Monaco, he was only able to score eight goals and provide seven assists in 32 matches, which means his average fell to a goal involvement every 2.13 games in the same season that Alexandre Lacazette produced 27 goals and assists in 35 games.
