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Private coach reveals Balogun’s World Cup secret

From The Punch · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • United States striker Folarin Balogun's strong FIFA World Cup performance is attributed to intensive, targeted individual training, according to his private coach.
  • Coach Saul Isaksson-Hurst worked with Balogun on his strengths and areas for improvement, particularly before his loan move to Reims and subsequent transfer to AS Monaco.
  • Balogun's development included significant pre-season preparation specifically designed to ready him for the World Cup year, following a successful loan spell in France and a move to Monaco.

United States striker Folarin Balogun's emergence on the global stage, highlighted by his brace in the USA's 4-1 World Cup victory over Paraguay, is the result of months of focused, intensive preparation. His private coach, Saul Isaksson-Hurst, revealed that targeted individual training played a crucial role in the 24-year-old's development.

Flo came to me in 2022 after an unsuccessful loan period at Middlesbrough. I wanted to obviously do some extra work to take his career further. We focused on his profile as a striker, read what his strengths are and the areas he could improve.

— Saul Isaksson-HurstBalogun's private coach described the initial focus of their training sessions.

Isaksson-Hurst began working closely with Balogun in 2022 after a loan spell at Middlesbrough that yielded limited opportunities. The coaching focused on identifying and enhancing Balogun's strengths as a striker while addressing areas needing improvement. This led to a significant pre-season training camp, which coincided with Balogun's loan move to French club Reims. He continued to train with Isaksson-Hurst during this period, traveling back from France for sessions.

So we did a big pre-season intensive camp, and he got his loan moved to France. He came back regularly on the Eurostar. We would work on all these things in the lead-up to his move to Monaco.

— Saul Isaksson-HurstHurst detailed the intensive training that preceded Balogun's successful loan spell in France and subsequent move to Monaco.

Balogun's successful loan at Reims, where he scored 21 goals, earned him a £35m transfer to AS Monaco in 2023. His progress continued, scoring 19 goals and providing five assists before his World Cup debut. Isaksson-Hurst designed another intensive training program specifically to prepare Balogun for the World Cup year, emphasizing the "real work" done in the pre-season leading up to his national team call-up. USA captain Tim Ream also commended Balogun's movement and finishing skills following his historic World Cup performance.

The real work came in the pre-season last summer, because he was going to have one this year and head straight to the USA camp. We put in a lot of work within that period to have a big season leading up to the FIFA World Cup.

— Saul Isaksson-HurstHurst explained the specific preparation undertaken to get Balogun ready for the World Cup.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by The Punch. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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