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• Balogun would be 'great addition' for USMNT, 'but his heart needs to be in it'

  Folarin Balogun would be a "great addition" to the United States team, but Arsenal's Matt Turner only wants the striker to make the switch if it "comes from the heart".

  Arsenal forward Balogun has excelled on loan with Reims this season, scoring 17 goals in 27 Ligue 1 appearances – behind only Jonathan David and Kylian Mbappe (both 19).

  The 21-year-old's excellent form has prompted talk of a tussle for his international allegiance, with the New York-born star eligible to represent England, the United States and Nigeria.

  Balogun has been a mainstay in the England Under-21 set-up, but he withdrew from the squad for this month's internationals due to injury.

  That development has led to fresh hope Balogun will pledge himself to the USMNT, and Turner confirmed he had spoken to his Gunners team-mate on the matter.

  "I spoke to Flo. We obviously had most of our preseason together, and I knew going into it he had some roots in the USA," the goalkeeper said on Wednesday.

  "So, he and I developed a relationship pretty quickly. That's pretty much the extent of it. We check in on each other here and there.

  "He'd be a great addition to our national team. I think he's done really well, obviously, for his club on loan, and we'll see.

  "The decision has to come from the heart, because it's not necessarily an easy task to come and play in these CONCACAF games. It's a tough region at times.

  "So, for us, we'd be really grateful to have him, but his heart needs to be in it."

  Earlier in the week, Balogun told Sky Sports he was yet to decide on his future but has aspirations of playing at the highest level.

  "My international future is not decided yet in terms of who I'll play for," he said. "But of course I want to play international football at the highest level, in the World Cups, and I want to compete at the highest level.

  "I want to put myself in positions where I'm performing in front of millions of people."

• Kane's World Cup disappointment behind him as England record looms – Southgate

  Harry Kane his World Cup disappointment behind him, England manager Gareth Southgate believes.

  The Three Lions captain missed a decisive penalty in the quarter-final defeat to France in Qatar, continuing the nation's long wait for international glory.

  Kane would have broken Wayne Rooney's international record had he scored the penalty, as well as potentially guiding England into the last four, but he fired his attempt over the bar and the Three Lions lost 2-1.

  He is not alone in penalty heartache for England, however, with team-mates Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho all missing spot-kicks in the shoot-out defeat to Italy at Wembley in the Euro 2020 final.

  Going back further, Southgate himself missed from the spot in England's semi-final defeat to Germany at Euro 1996, meaning Kane is only the latest in a series of stars to suffer penalty heartache.

  However, Southgate feels that will not hold back the Tottenham striker and backs him as one of the all-time greats.

  "We've seen that with his performances and goals for his club that he has put it behind him," he said.

  "He knows he's going to have added motivation tomorrow [Wednesday] night to come back and show everybody what he is about again in an England shirt. For us that is a good position.

  "It's always difficult to compare across ages, there a lot who I didn't see because I wasn't alive. But because of his goalscoring alone, that puts him in the upper echelons of that group.

  "He provides so much more for the team than that, his quality of passing, his vision, his touch, he's an outstanding player and we're very fortunate to have him."

  The honour of being England's leading goalscorer is almost certain to fall to Kane, who is tied with Rooney on 53 for the Three Lions, and Declan Rice feels it would be a just reward.

  "I think you can see every time he scores a goal how much it means to him. Every goal, every training session, everything he does is at such a high level," the midfielder added.

  "If he does break the record tomorrow, it will be thoroughly deserved. He is a real leader and a lot of us will be very happy for him if he breaks the record tomorrow night."

• Gnonto still in awe of working with Mancini at Italy: 'He was an idol'

  Wilfried Gnonto has expressed his continued disbelief at working alongside Italy head coach Roberto Mancini as they prepare to start their Euro 2024 qualifiers against England on Thursday.

  Italy missed out on the 2022 World Cup in Qatar after a loss to North Macedonia in their qualifying play-off in March last year.

  It was the second successive World Cup that the Azzurri had missed and came just months after their victorious Euro 2020 campaign that saw them beat England on penalties in the final.

  Gnonto made his international debut in May 2022 and looks set to add to his eight caps for the national side when they face England on Thursday before travelling to Malta on Sunday. 

  The Leeds United winger was a product of the Inter youth academy when Mancini was in charge of the Italian side and hailed the national team boss as one of his inspirations.

  In an interview with Corriere della Sera, Gnonto said: "I remember when I was young at Inter and he coached the first team. He was an idol and I never expected to be in the national team with him."

  The winger became the youngest goalscorer for Italy when he scored against Germany last June and backs Mancini's recent claim that Italy have young talent comparable to England's Jude Bellingham.

  He said: "He gave a strong signal, both with me and with other young people. We hope many others will follow."

  The 19-year-old also hailed to influence of former assistant coach Gianluca Vialli, who worked with the younger players extensively before passing away after a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

  "He immediately tried to make me feel part of the group and to give me advice. The moments spent together and his words will always remain with me," Gnonto said.

  Leeds sit 14th in the Premier League but just two points off the relegation zone, with Gnonto registering four goals in all competitions since his move from Zurich last year. 

  "I didn't even hope so much, it all happened very quickly and I didn't have time to realise," he said, reflecting on his transfer to the Premier League. 

  "But it was a beautiful emotion. The impact was good on a personal level, the team is experiencing some ups and downs.

  "It seems like a dream to me. I come from Baveno and I never expected one day to get to the Premier League or to receive compliments from such players. I live everything with great pride and I always try to commit myself to improve."