West Bromwich Albion striker Saido Berahino recently hit out at Chairman Jeremy Peace over the way that he was treated by the club regarding a potential transfer to Tottenham Hotspur. It was reported by various sources that Spurs were interested in signing the 22 year-old striker and they subsequently had four bids rejected. Berahino was interested in switching the midlands for London, and was believed to have been told by manager Tony Pulis that he would be allowed to leave the club during the summer transfer window, however despite the bids from Tottenham, West Brom refused to sell the striker.
In the aftermath of the mini-saga, Berahino went on twitter to express his feelings at the situation, saying: “sad how I can’t say exactly how the club has treated me but I can officially say I will never play Jeremy Peace.” The striker has been given extra time off by the club and they are yet to decide his punishment. The baggies were never keen on selling their star striker and Peace offered some clarification on the matter, stating: “We have a key player who has been very unsettled by antics which were designed to get him out of our club cheaply. Those tactics have continued despite my making our position clear in my first conversation with Daniel Levy on this subject in mid-August. I said selling Saido so late in the window was not on our agenda.”
Saido Berahino has only made 2 appearances this season and was left out of the squad for West Brom’s game against Chelsea.
This helped to fuel the speculation that he might be on his way out of the club, however at this point he is now in limbo.
Berahino was a vital component in West Brom’s team last season; contributing 20 goals in 45 appearances and helping the baggies to a 13th place finish. Tottenham represents a more attractive proposition for the striker as he would have had the chance to play with a team that also plays European Football; this isn’t the first time interest from Spurs has caused controversy, as Southampton midfielder Victor Wanyama tried to force a move from the South Coast to London during the transfer window and Manchester United midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin tried to do the same last summer.
The fact that West Brom didn’t allow for the transfer of Berahino, could possibly have a negative effect on the field and in the dressing room as the player will definitely be focused on finding a way to leave the club. West Brom currently sits in 15th place with four points from as many games and it may prove a difficult season for the club if they are unable to integrate their star striker back into the team.
