Nantes are starting to regret their decision not to sign Folarin Balogun on loan from Arsenal, according to reports from France.

L’Equipe (via Sport Witness) report that Folarin Balogun was in the sights of the Nantes hierarchy this summer, but the signing was blocked by their head coach Antoine Kombouare and their sports coordinator Philippe Mao.

Balogun ended up joining Stade de Reims on loan instead, and his early performances have reportedly given Nantes some regrets.

After another goal at the weekend, the Arsenal loanee is now Ligue 1’s joint-third top scorer with five goals, having also won two penalties, and assisted another goal. In just six games, that’s a very impressive return for the 21-year-old.

Balogun alone has contributed to six goals, whilst Nantes only have six goals in total.

Nantes obviously had no chance of signing Ligue 1 top scorers Kylian Mbappe or Neymar this summer, but they had the opportunity to sign the next most prolific goalscorer in the division (in the opening six games) and they passed it up.

Time will tell how much of a mistake that was. It’s very possible Balogun’s goals dry up and Nantes hit a run of form and all their regrets are forgotten. But the early signs suggest that’s not going to be the case.