Monaco’s striker, Folarin Balogun, aged 23, has resumed first-team training after a period of absence since early December. The USMNT international had initially dislocated his shoulder in a match against Stade Rennais in October. He briefly returned to play at the end of November, but the shoulder issue recurred. The injury worsened during the game against Olympique de Marseille at the beginning of December, leading to the decision for surgery.
Balogun participated in his first training session this Wednesday. While he is not expected to play in the upcoming match against Toulouse FC this weekend, coach Adi Hütter mentioned that Balogun might be available for the game against SCO Angers the following week. However, a cautious approach will be taken, and his actual return to playing may be postponed until after the international break.
Aleksandr Golovin, 28, is also on the verge of returning. Unlike Balogun, the Russian midfielder has not yet rejoined first-team training. However, Hütter suggested that Golovin could potentially feature in either the Angers match next week or the game against OGC Nice after the international break. Regarding Vanderson, who missed Wednesday’s training, it is understood that there are no concerns. His absence was simply due to workload management following two intense training sessions earlier in the week.