Sporting director confirms Brest chose to sign Islam Slimani over Arsenal striker Balogun 

Stade Brestois sporting director Grégory Lorenzi has confirmed that the Pirates were interested in Arsenal striker Folarin Balogun last summer but eventually identified 2019 Africa Cup of Nations winner Islam Slimani as their top transfer target to bolster the frontline. 

Balogun was on the radar of several clubs in Germany, France and England but chose to join Stade de Reims on a season-long loan last August. 

The Hale End Academy product has performed beyond expectations since landing at Reims and is one of the top scorers in the French top-flight with seventeen goals, bettered only by Paris Saint Germain's Kylian Mbappe and Lille's Jonathan David.

Brest will be regretting that they passed up the opportunity to sign Balogun given his exploits at Reims.

In addition, Slimani, the preferred striker, struggled for form at Brest with only one goal in sixteen league matches and was released from his contract in January 2023.

"Balogun was one of those players playing in big European clubs, lacking playing time and potentially wanting to harden up in intermediate clubs like Brest," Lorenzi said to Le Telegramme, via mercatofootanglais.

Lorenzi explained that Brest's failure to sign Balogun happens regularly in all football clubs. 

"We had defined the profile we were looking for and established a list of names that seemed feasible to us from a financial point of view, which we had submitted to the staff. at each transfer window, it's the same thing: you can never know if the player you're going to take, or the one you haven't taken, is going to perform well.

"I am not focusing on Balogun. He's not the first, nor the last player we miss. Missing out on opportunity is part of our job.

"Just as on the contrary, we are on a player, who finally chose another club, and six months later, we say to ourselves that it is for the best".

Balogun will be hoping to add to his tally on Sunday afternoon when Reims face Brest at the Stade Auguste-Delaune II.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel 

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