After Inter Milan decided not to pursue Romelu Lukaku, Arsenal may be in line for a £50 million windfall. The Italian team decided not to re-sign the Chelsea striker and is now apparently ready to increase their interest in Folarin Balogun of the Arsenal.
Lukaku spent the previous season on loan at the San Siro, and he had appeared to make a permanent return to Inter. After helping the team advance to the Champions League final in June, the Belgian international was eager to return to the organisation.
Chelsea wants to offload £97.5 million striker Romelu Lukaku as soon as possible since Mauricio Pochettino has no ambitions for the player. GianlucaDiMarzio.com, however, claimed on Saturday that Inter had backed off a move when Lukaku did not return their calls.
Inter is looking at alternatives to the 30-year-old since they need to sign a striker. Additionally, it might enable Arsenal to sell Balogun for £50 million.
According to Fabrizio Romano, Inter will ask Arsenal for the “final terms” of a prospective Balogun trade early the next week. The 22-year-old is reportedly one of several strikers Inter are reportedly interested in.
Balogun caught the eye of teams across Europe with his performance on loan at Reims last season. He scored 22 goals in all competitions for the French side, his first full campaign as a first-team regular in his career.
The forward, who recently chose to represent USA at international level, still has two years remaining on his Arsenal contract. Arsenal are not desperate to sell but Balogun has made it clear he wants to be a regular again next season, even if it means leaving the Emirates.
The Gunners won’t let him go cheaply, with £50m widely reported as his price tag. Arsenal have already spent over £200m on new signings this summer so bringing in a sizable fee for Balogun could be welcome.
Wednesday’s friendly match against FC Nurnberg ended in a 1-1 tie, with Balogun coming off the bench. Mikel Arteta was unable to offer much details on his future after the game.
