After wining and dining Arsenal striker Folarin Balogun on a whirlwind tour through the heart of American culture a few months ago -- a dog-themed outdoor pub, spring training baseball and an Orlando Magic basketball game -- the United States men's national team finally got its man.
On Tuesday, FIFA approved the one-time switch for the 21-year-old striker to represent the United States after playing for England at youth level. And we'll leave it to former William & Mary winger Jon Stewart to sum up the general feeling among the USMNT fanbase.
Balogunnnnnnnnnnnn!!!!! #USMNT
— Jon Stewart (@jonstewart) May 16, 2023
With 19 goals on loan at Reims in Ligue 1 this season, Balogun certainly feels like a massive get -- especially for a national team that hasn't had consistent striker production since the days of, I don't know, Billy Gonsalves? At the same time, we've seen plenty of other dual-national commits fizzle out for the U.S.: Aron Johannsson, Timmy Chandler, Edgar Castillo, Jose Torres, Julian Green and so on.
Balogun is better than all of them -- and he might even be better than Stewart realizes, too.