Turner: Arsenal's Balogun 'great' option for U.S.

Arsenal goalkeeper Matt Turner said Gunners' teammate Folarin Balogun, currently on loan at Reims, would be "a great addition" to the United States national team.

Balogun, 21, has been in scintillating form for Reims this season, with his 17 goals in 27 league appearances tying him for third in the Ligue 11 goalscoring charts behind Lille's Jonathan David and Paris Saint-Germain's Kylian Mbappe, who have 19 each.

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Balogun is eligible to represent the U.S., England and Nigeria. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, but moved to the U.K. when he was two years old and has represented England at youth international level. Balogun was expected to join up with England's U21 team during the international window, but withdrew due to injury.

"I spoke to Flo. We obviously had most of our preseason together, and I knew going into it he had some roots in U.S.," Turner said during Wednesday's media availability. "So he and I developed a relationship pretty quickly. That's pretty much the extent of it. We check in on each other here and there.

"He'd be a great addition to our national team. I think he's done really well, obviously, for his club on loan, and we'll see. The decision has to come from the heart, because it's not necessarily an easy task to come and play in these CONCACAF games. It's a tough region at times. So for us, we'd be really grateful to have him, but his heart needs to be in it."

The U.S. have had a recent run of success in recruiting dual nationals, with Sergino Dest, Valencia midfielder Yunus Musah and Groningen forward Ricardo Pepi opting to represent the Stars and Stripes. Just last week, Club America forward Alejandro Zendejas did the same.

In a bid to continue that trend, interim U.S. manager Anthony Hudson said last week that he'd been in contact with Balogun.

"There is open dialogue with [Balogun] and his team and that dialogue is continuing, and that's all I can say on that one," Hudson said ahead of the Americans' CONCACAF Nations Leagues game against Grenada and El Salvador.

Earlier this week, Balogun spoke with Sky Sports about his impending decision and said: "My international future is not decided yet in terms of who I'll play for, but of course I want to play international football at the highest level in the World Cups and I want to compete at the highest level.

"I want to put myself in positions where I'm performing in front of millions of people."

Balogun is a product of Arsenal's youth system, having joined the club at age eight. He has made 10 first-team appearances, scoring twice. He spent the 2021-22 season on loan at second-tier side Middlesbrough, where he scored three goals in 21 league and cup appearances.