AC Milan reportedly intend to battle bitter adversaries Inter Milan for the signature of Arsenal striker Folarin Balogun.
The 22-year-old was an unexpected success story during his loan spell with Reims last season, finding the back of the net 21 times in 37 Ligue 1 appearances.
Balogun's impressive exploits in France caught the eye of the USA international team, and having played for England at youth level, he pledged allegiance to the Stars and Stripes earlier this year.
The former Middlesbrough loanee took no time at all to adapt to the rigours of senior international football, scoring in his second appearance against Canada in the final of the CONCACAF Nations League.
Reims were keen to convert Balogun's loan switch into a permanent move, but the French side did not possess the financial firepower to poach the striker permanently, and he has since returned to Arsenal for pre-season.
Balogun played in the second half of the Gunners' recent friendly draw with Nurnberg, and he was recently named in their travelling squad for their pre-season tour of the USA.
However, it remains to be seen if the 22-year-old can force his way into the first-team setup amid competition from Eddie Nketiah, Gabriel Jesus, Leandro Trossard and Kai Havertz.
Inter are thought to be weighing up an approach for the Arsenal man, as the Nerazzurri seek out alternatives to Romelu Lukaku, having dropped their interest in the Chelsea man after learning of his talks with Juventus.
Now, Gianluca Di Marzio claims that Milan are also plotting a move for Balogun, as the Rossoneri prepare for life without the recently-retired Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Balogun is still under contract with Arsenal for another two years, and the Gunners are reportedly ready to demand as much as £50m to let the 22-year-old leave in the current window.
Nevertheless, Mikel Arteta opened the door for Balogun to make his mark in pre-season when asked after the draw with Nurnberg if he wanted to see the striker remain at the Emirates.
"Yeah. He's just staying here with us at the moment and we will see what happens," Arteta told reporters. "This is what he has been doing and that's why we gave him the minutes that he deserves to show what he can do."
Balogun joined Arsenal's academy in 2011 but has only made 10 competitive appearances for the first team so far, registering two goals and one assist in the 2020-21 Europa League.
A shock switch to Chelsea has also been mooted for the striker, although it is unclear if he would be willing to swap the Emirates for Stamford Bridge - a path that fellow Hale End product Omari Hutchinson walked down last year.
Arsenal will face the MLS All-Stars, Barcelona and Manchester United as part of their USA tour, kicking off against the former in Washington on Wednesday. body check tags ::
