Arsenal's Folarin Balogun dazzles for Stade Reims, receives higher rating than Messi and Mbappe

By Ben Evans

Arsenal loanee Folarin Balogun won’t forget his performance against Paris Saint-Germain in a hurry.

The 21-year-old scored a last-minute equalised to earn Stade Reims a memorable point against the French champions.

According to SofaScore, Balogun outperformed some very high-profile players last night.

Balogun has had a fantastic time at in Ligue 1 so far, having already scored 11 goals in 19 appearances.

The young forward is just 2 goals away from being top scorer in the league, while playing for a mid-table side.

His manager, Will Still, has been a revelation at Reims.

He was Oscar Garcia’s assistant manager before he was sacked in October and took over as caretaker.

Twelve matches later, Still is still unbeaten in the league, and Balogun has been vital to that run.

The England under-21 international needed a successful loan spell this season and has achieved just that.

Balogun’s making headlines again after a brilliant performance against champions-elect PSG.

Balogun makes headlines against PSG

SofaScore gave Balogun a 7.5 rating for his performance yesterday, better than nearly all of his teammates.

Not only that, he outperformed Kylian Mbappe (6.7) and Lionel Messi, who has apparently the worst player on the pitch.

These ratings need to be taken with a pinch of salt when that’s the case, but it’s still a good sign for Balogun.

Balogun’s rise in France has been compared to that of William Saliba, who has returned at an exceptional level this season.

There was talk that Balogun may be recalled this month as cover for the injured Gabriel Jesus.

Thankfully for Balogun and Reims, that option wasn’t taken up, with Eddie Nketiah stepping up in the Brazilian’s absence.

The more minutes the 21-year-old can accumulate this season the better for Arsenal.

He’s clearly a very bright talent, and looks good enough to play a role for the Gunners next season.

Where he fits into the team is a more challenging dilemma for Mikel Arteta.

However, he’ll be finding it impossible to ignore Balogun’s performances against the likes of PSG.