Arsenal forward Folarin Balogun has issued Mikel Arteta "an ultimatum" regarding his future at the club, claims journalist Paul Brown.
Arsenal transfer news – what's going on with Folarin Balogun?
After an unbelievable season with Ligue 1 side Stade Reims last year, Arsenal have a decision to make regarding the future of the exciting American prospect.
The New York-born player has made it clear to the wider footballing world that after getting a taste for regular first-team football in France, he doesn't want to go back to being a backup option, nor does he want to spend another year on loan – he either wants the number nine spot in North London, or he wants to leave, permanently.
While there was an assumption that this was how he felt after his comments about feeling "appreciated" upon switching his national allegiance to the US, it was made crystal clear after he spoke to reporters following a USMNT game.
"What I can say is that I definitely won't go out on loan again."
With Arteta favouring Gabriel Jesus as the team's main number nine, a sale of the player is now probably the most likely outcome, and with the price tag reported to be only £35m by football.london, there are plenty of suitors.
According to FootballTransfers, West Ham United have made the signing of the American star a 'priority' this summer as they look to solve their goal-scoring problems.
Outside the Premier League, Leipzig are said to be keen on the player, as are Champions League runners-up Inter Milan and cross-city rivals AC Milan.
Adding to all the drama, Balogun recently Tweeted “It is time!” alongside an egg timer emoji before then deleting the post from social media.
What has journalist Paul Brown said about Folarin Balogun's situation?
Brown made it clear that a decision must be made regarding Balogun this summer and that decision has almost been forced upon the club by the player himself as he is desperate to be the main man somewhere.
Speaking to Football FanCast, he said: "He did kind of issue them with a bit of an ultimatum by saying that he does not want to go out on loan again next season. So, it was kind of a play me or sell me really statement from Balogun, as he has thrown the gauntlet down to Arteta, and it'll be interesting to see what he does."
How good was Folarin Balogun last season?
All of this attention and speculation has come about as a result of a fantastic season for the American last year.
In just 37 Ligue 1 appearances for Reims, Balogun scored a seriously impressive 21 goals and assisted another three, giving him a goal contribution on average every one-and-a-half games.
According to WhoScored, he averaged a rating of 6.90 across those 37 matches, making it perhaps unsurprising that Arteta referred to him as "special" earlier this year.
The underlying numbers back up the Spaniard's assessment as well.
According to FBref, who compare players in a similar position across Europe's top five leagues, he sits in the top 7% for non-penalty expected goals, 9% for total shots, and 19% for touches in the opposition's penalty area.
It certainly looks like the US national team have a world-class talent on their hands, and whichever team takes him off of Arsenal's hands could have a bright future spearheaded by the American.
