USA ahead of Nigeria and England in rush to cap Folarin Balogun
During the last international fortnight, US officials took advantage of Balogun being on a break in Orlando, near where they were based, to hold some initial and informal talks
The US are ready to make Folarin Balogun one of their poster boys if he opts to represent them at senior international level.
Arsenal striker Balogun is at the centre of a battle for his services involving England, America and Nigeria following his stunning season on loan at French club Reims.
He met with Lee Carsley last week, with Balogun part of his plans for this summer’s Euros and the Under-21 boss hoping he can help convince the youngster that his future lies with England.
During the last international fortnight, US officials took advantage of Balogun being on a break in Orlando, near where they were based, to hold some initial and informal talks.
They have identified Balogun as a prime candidate to be the prolific No.9 they have been searching years for and who they want to spearhead the team they are building, which displayed its potential by reaching the last-16 of the World Cup in Qatar.
New York-born Balogun has also been earmarked for an equally-prominent role off the pitch.
America are co-hosting the next World Cup in 2026 with Canada and Mexico and aiming to make it one of the biggest ever in terms of scale as well as the number of teams included which will rise to 48 for the first time.
They are making a real push to get Balogun on board, with big plans drawn up for him, and are prepared to make the 21-year-old one of the main faces in their promotion of the team and tournament alongside the likes of Christian Pulisic and Gio Reyna.
The early-stage discussions with Balogun were described by US sources as positive though no timeline was put on the situation and they are keen to avoid putting pressure on him.
Balogun’s focus right now is on finishing his breakout season strongly with Reims and any decision he does make on his international future will be one based purely on football.
He has scored 19 goals in 31 games for Reims in his first loan spell away from Arsenal at a top division club.
Balogun’s tally of 18 Ligue 1 goals has also seen him equal Glenn Hoddle’s record as the top-scoring Englishman in a French league season.
He is just one goal behind Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappe and Lille’s Jonathan David in the race for Ligue 1’s golden boot.
