Contrary to previous reports, Football.London are now claiming that Folarin Balogun does have a recall clause in his loan deal with Stade de Reims.

Folarin Balogun is easily Arsenal’s top goalscorer on loan this season, having netted eight times in the first part of the campaign with Stade de Reims.

With Gabriel Jesus picking up an injury, there’s some speculation online about whether Arsenal could bring back one of their loanees to fill the gap in the squad.

Balogun is the obvious choice, considering his success on the goalscoring front.

Tom Canton of Football.London reports that Balogun’s deal does have recall clause in it for the January window.

But Canton adds that he’d be surprised if Arsenal activate it, given the loan is going so well and the Gunners have other options whilst Jesus is out.

It wouldn’t be optimal to bring the striker back for a few games and then let him sit on the bench for the rest of the season when he could have been playing weekly at Reims.

All the same, the existence of a recall clause is news in itself. Back in September, reports suggested Balogun’s deal didn’t have a recall option, and he was expected to spend the full campaign in France.

Regardless of the truth of the matter, it seems the current consensus is that Balogun isn’t returning to Arsenal in January – recall clause or not.

Still, if Jesus ends up being ruled out for longer than expected, this might be one to keep an eye on.