Ligue 1 giants Marseille are looking to sign Folarin Balogun on loan from Premier League leaders Arsenal and have lined up Southampton’s Sekou Mara as a potential alternative.
With 34-year-old Alexis Sanchez the only member of the L’OM squad to hit double figures so far in 2022/23, Marseille are setting their sights on bringing a younger centre-forward to the Stade Velodrome during the off-season.
One with a proven track record in Ligue 1, L’Equipe add, would be a bonus.
Hence why Balogun features highly on Igor Tudor’s wishlist. Balogun has scored 19 goals in all competitions for Will Still’s coupon busting Reims side, after all.
The New York-born poacher faces an uncertain future at parent club Arsenal; Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah already at Mikel Arteta’s disposal. That is without mentioning the versatile Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard too.
“He has been phenomenal (at Reims),” Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta smiles of his now-£30 million-rated academy graduate.
“Keep doing what (you) have been doing and don’t focus on anything else. Everything else will come naturally. He’s been working really well for him and the team.”
Marseille like Arsenal striker Folarin Balogun
If Marseille cannot get their mitts on Balogun, L’Equipe believe they could turn to a man who may be about to suffer relegation in successive seasons. Sekou Mara went down with crisis-hit Bordeaux in 2022. He could suffer the same fate at Southampton in 2023.
Mara, while undeniably talented, almost epitomises the problems in Southampton’s recruitment policy; the Saints bringing in a host of promising youngsters who, while brimming with potential and re-sale value, are not yet ready to be relied upon in the fierce pressure of a relegation battle.
Mara has only started six games in all competitions. He has two goals, although both of those – funnily enough – came against Manchester City.
Marseille are also admirers of Nantes’ Ludovic Blas and Strasbourg starlet Moise Sahi Dion.
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