England Under-21 boss Lee Carsley has urged Arsenal youngster Folarin Balogun to seek a temporary move away from the club.
The 20-year-old is set to lead the line for Carsley’s side when they take on Czech Republic at Turf Moor on Thursday night.
Balogun will be handed the chance despite finding minutes difficult to come by at the Gunners this season.
Despite signing a new contract earlier this year, manager Mikel Arteta has been reluctant to throw him into the starting line-up, with the exception of the opening day defeat to Brentford.
Since then, he has played just 18 minutes for the senior side, with the majority of his football coming for the Under-23s.
HAVE YOUR SAY! Does Balogun deserve a chance in the Arsenal starting lineup? Let us know your thoughts
And Carsley has suggested that a loan switch could hand the young striker more minutes which will in turn, aid his development.
“He’s probably missed out on that little bit of senior football. You need testing,” Carsley said.
“Watching him in the Under-23s for Arsenal, it’s probably a little bit too easy for him and he’s passed that level.
“I imagine he wants to play for Arsenal and pushing for a position but it’s such a big club with a lot of competition.
“They’ll have a career path for him and a way to break through because he’s got all the attributes.
"I think it would be fair to say that a lot of the clubs in Europe would be aware of Flo's qualities and if anything he has just got to keep proving it to himself. He is the only person he's got to impress and look himself in the mirror.
“He's got outstanding ability, attributes and workrate and he is a player that people look forward to seeing."
The England U21 boss added: "I had a conversation with Flo a week ago to tell him that he was going to start, he was going to be our No9 and that to make sure that he was fully focused when he came in.”
Arteta has hinted that he could allow Balogun to make a move in January, revealing a decision will be made before the end of the year.
“We will see what happens,” the Arsenal boss said last month. “Again, with Flo we have a really clear project. The steps that he’s making, they are the right steps.
How will Steven Gerrard fare at Aston Villa? Cast your vote below...
“Don’t forget he is really young, he hasn’t played almost any professional football, and you need to go through every phase – and don’t try to jump phases when you are not ready to do so.
“Again I’m really happy with him, he’s making the right progress and in December we will see where we are and what’s the best for him as well.”
