‘Folarin Balogun still has a future with the Gunners’

Arsenal manager, Mikel Arteta, has re-affirmed his intention to renew Folarin Balogun’s contract at the Emirates.

“Folarin is a player that I really like. Obviously, I’ve got this situation and I believe it’s later than what I would like because I wasn’t here when everything started to develop but yes, he’s a player that I would like to give chances to. That’s why he was in the squad and I showed him that yes, we count on him and we believe in him and if he wants, he’s going to have a future in the club.

Balogun was full of pride after making his Arsenal debut in their Europea League defeat of Dundalk.

The striker came off the bench in Arsenal’s 3-0 win over Dundalk on Thursday night.

He told arsenal.com: “Yeah it feels great. It’s a moment I have been waiting for for a little while so to finally get it feels great. I can only thanks Mikel ad the staff for this opportunity and I look forward to doing it more often.

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“It’s been tough, I’ve been at a few other clubs doing trials and stuff like that but I’ve been working my way through the academy and I think as time has gone on I’ve become a better player. I think that’s shown in my performances and I think it’s good now to get the recognition that my performances deserve.”

On the moment he entered the game, Balogun added: “Loads of emotions really. I knew that this was the moment I’d been waiting for but at the same time I knew there was a job that needed to be done. So I just tried to come on, make runs, be a nuisance and just help the team.”