Arsenal forward’s impressive form on loan prompts rumours of permanent exit

Arsenal’s flying start to the Premier League continued on Saturday, as they beat rivals Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 in the north London derby.

Goals from Thomas Partey, Gabriel Jesus and Granit Xhaka were enough to give The Gunners victory, with Harry Kane’s penalty not enough for the visitors.

Arsenal have now won seven of their eight games so far this term in the league, and only Manchester City have scored more goals than the 20 that they have racked up.

Mikel Arteta’s side remain top of the Premier League table, although it appears that they may now face a battle to keep hold of one of their young stars.

As reported by Ekrem Konur, French side Reims are intent on making their loan deal for Folarin Balogun permanent.

The 21-year-old has scored six goals and registered two assists in nine Ligue 1 matches so far this term, including five goals in his first six games.

The forward averages almost exactly a goal every 100 minutes, having taken a total of 599 minutes of football to net six times.

Balogun has been in fine form since moving to France

That tally puts him joint-second in the list of top scorers in Ligue 1 this season, behind the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Neymar.

Balogun joined the French top tier side over the summer on a season-long loan deal, having struggled for playing time at parent club Arsenal.

Last term, the forward made just four appearances for The Gunners before being shipped to Middlesbrough in January on loan for the remainder of the campaign.

He scored just twice in 18 Championship games for Boro, though, and returned to Arsneal at the end of the season before making the move overseas.

In total, the youngster has made ten senior appearances for Arsenal, scoring twice and providing one assist.

His only two goals for the club both came in the Europa League during the 2020/21 season, against Molde and Dundalk.

Despite his lack of playing time previously, Arsenal are unlikely to let Balogun leave the club following such a strong start to the season in France.

While Jesus arrived over the summer, both Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette have left the club over the summer, leaving Eddie Nketiah as Jesus’ only deputy.