U.S. men's national team forward Folarian Balogun is still an AS Monaco player after his proposed $52.3 million (€45m) transfer to Everton fell through, but it's not clear how much longer that will be the case.
Balogun is not on the Monaco squad that's facing reigning Ligue 1 champion Paris Saint-Germain on Friday, Sept. 4, and the club is still seeking a deal that would see the player move elsewhere.
Additionally, Balogun was left off Monaco's squad for the UEFA Conference League, meaning the New York-born forward won't help the club in continental competition.
Monaco hoped to both earn a lucrative transfer fee from Balogun's move and to clear a non-EU player spot to bring in Mexico international Erik Lira. Instead, Balogun is still on the squad
with Monaco feeling the financial crunch as it works to come into the French league's financial compliance regulations.
"Now we are still waiting for Balo to come back for us to sit and discuss and to realize between us what’s next," Monaco CEO Scuro said after the failed move. "We still have other markets open, which we are having discussions about with different players, including Balo. Let’s see what can still happen until Thursday, because we still have markets that have the financial capacity to do something."
With Thursday having come and gone, though, it's not clear what the next step is for the forward.
Where else could Balogun transfer to this summer?
Options are limited for Balogun, especially looking at options that tick the boxes of having the budget to afford a move for Balogun and being a league with a high enough quality to challenge the forward.
The transfer window in Turkey closes the same day as Monaco's match with PSG on Sept. 4. Clubs in Saudi Arabia can sign players until Oct. 12. Portugal is another long-shot option but one that is on the table, with the window in the Iberian nation staying open until Sept. 15.
A return to the U.S. is not possible as the MLS window closed Sept. 2, but something out of left field could come from Liga MX or the Brazilian league, where players are allowed to join clubs through Sept. 11.
Another potential, but unlikely, route is Ligue 1's "joker" rule, which lets clubs bring in one player in the fall from another team in France. Monaco is looking to exploit the rule with a signing of its own, with the French press reporting the team is considering a move for Nice's Hicham Boudaoui.
Yet, few French teams would be willing to shoulder the financial burden of a fee and Balogun's salary.
It has been a tumultuous summer for the 25-year-old, who also saw FIFA suspend his red card to allow him to play a World Cup round of 16 contest against Belgium after he'd been sent off in the previous match. U.S. President Donald Trump claimed responsibility for the reversal, infuriating many rival teams.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why isn't Folarin Balogun playing for Monaco? Latest on forward's future
