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‘Definitely got the quality’: Aaron Ramsey says ‘very exciting’ Arsenal youngster is good enough for the PL
Aaron Ramsey has insisted that Folarin Balogun is good enough to play in the Premier League after facing the Arsenal striker in France last season.
Ramsey was speaking to the (25/6; page 75) amid speculation that the 21-year-old could leave the Emirates this summer in search of regular game-time.
Mikel Arteta must have agonised over what he is going to do with Folarin Balogun this summer. Of course, he has just enjoyed an outstanding loan spell with Reims in Ligue 1, scoring 22 goals in all competitions.
Ramsey backs Balogun to thrive in the Premier League
However, it appears that he could have already made his final appearance for the Gunners. Reports from towards the end of the season said that Balogun had no plans to sign a new contract with Arsenal.
The youngster wants to be the first-choice wherever he is playing next year. And he went on to make his stance even clearer recently, by suggesting that .
With Gabriel Jesus the first-choice at the Emirates, Arsenal seemingly have little choice but to consider offers for the USMNT international.
But clearly, Aaron Ramsey feels that it would be a shame for the Gunners to lose Balogun this summer.
“Balogun’s very good,” he told the .
“We played against him a couple of times and, from what I saw there, he’s a very exciting player to have in your team.
“Arsenal have many great players, but he’s definitely got the quality.
“And yes, he’s good enough for the Premier League.”
Unfortunately, Balogun appears to be knocking on the door at the worst possible time. Arsenal spent a few years much closer to the mid-table spots. But they are back amongst the title challengers now.
And Gabriel Jesus has played an important part in that. Certainly, it is going to take something very special to knock Jesus down the pecking order.
Balogun looks to be a very exciting talent. But he is unproven in the Premier League. And his loan spell with Middlesbrough proved to be a disappointment. So Arteta surely cannot offer the assurances he is looking for.
In an ideal world, Arsenal would surely keep Balogun. But it may just be that he has come through at the wrong time to make the grade at the Emirates.