Folarin Balogun’s transfer to Everton fell apart late on deadline day, denying Arsenal a sell-on fee and seemingly causing significant problems for Chelsea in the process.
Early on deadline day, we covered reports that AS Monaco’s Folarin Balogun was set to sign for Everton in a €50m package that would see Arsenal cashing in on their 17.5% sell-on clause.
Yet that move was thrown into doubt after Fabrice Hawkins reported for RMC Sport that Balogun had failed his medical.
Sami Mokbel reported for the BBC that Everton still wanted to proceed with the deal, but at a lower price. The deal was renegotiated for a lower fixed fee with higher add-ons, but David Ornstein reports for The Athletic that the player then pulled out and returned to Monaco.
The failed transfer denied Arsenal a fee in the region of £6-7.5m, but the saga also had serious implications for Chelsea.
Chelsea had hoped to sign Lamine Camara from Monaco as a replacement for Enzo Fernandez, with The Athletic reporting that they had a full written agreement in place. But after Monaco renegotiated Balogun’s exit, they pulled out of the Camara deal.
Monaco evidently felt the Balogun sale would bring in enough money, and they no longer needed to sell Camara. But Balogun then pulled out of the Everton move, too late for Monaco and Chelsea to revive their transfer.
Quite why Balogun decided against the Everton transfer hasn’t been reported.
It’s fair to assume he might have been unhappy with how the Merseyside club conducted themselves, leaking reports of his failed medical to the media and trying to lower the transfer fee at the last minute. But he may also just have had a change of heart.
Arsenal will retain their sell-on clause for future windows, but whether Monaco receive another bid for a similar amount is far from certain. The striker’s deal expires in 2028, there will be questions about this failed medical, and he won’t have a World Cup showcase next summer.
Unless the 25-year-old has a fantastic 2026/27 season, it’s likely a transfer next year won’t hit the same figure in that context.
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