Balogun, Monaco and Conference League
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The final hours of last Tuesday, deadline day across the five major European leagues, brought plenty of twists and turns in the deal between Everton and AS Monaco for Folarin Balogun. In the end, the
Everton manager David Moyes has opened up on a turbulent conclusion to the summer transfer window, admitting he has been forced to "live with disappointments" following a series of failed moves. The Toffees boss saw a high-profile deal for USMNT striker Folarin Balogun fall through at the final hour while losing a key creative spark to Manchester City.
And so, at the end of a dreamy summer, two months after he seized every spotlight imaginable, Balogun will retreat to the relative anonymity of Monaco, to home games at a half-empty 16,360-seat stadium, to a league that few in the United States know how to watch.
It was a deadline day that was as intriguing as it was infuriating at Everton but why did Folarin Balogun walk away from a deal at the final moment? The Toffees had expected the forward to arrive on a plane due to leave Nice at 07:00 BST but there were eyebrows raised when he didn't get that flight and he was late getting into Liverpool.