AFC Bournemouth vs West Brom - Tony Pulis talked about Saido Berahino transfer sagas

Posted Saturday, August 27, 2016 by PA

West Brom boss Tony Pulis believes Saido Berahino needs the transfer window to close before he can recapture his true form.

The striker looked set to leave The Hawthorns this summer but it now looks likely he will stay, with the Baggies not prepared to sell him until they find a replacement.

Time is running out ahead of Wednesday's deadline, with Crystal Palace and Stoke having tabled bids around B£20million for the former England Under-21 forward, who has one year left on his deal.

He missed several chances and then a penalty in the shoot-out as the Baggies lost to Northampton in the EFL Cup on Tuesday and has scored just once in his last 18 games.

The Baggies host Middlesbrough in the Premier League on Sunday and Pulis is hopeful Berahino - who threatened to strike last year when several bids from Tottenham were rejected - will return to his old self after the deadline.

"He'll be fine. Getting over the next three or four days will be massive for him," Pulis said.

"I just think, one day, I will write a thesis on it. It will be a long one. Is this the fourth or fifth window? It seems like about 20 with him. The kid has had to put up with it, you can't stop it, unfortunately. Some of the stories I could tell you.

"I was disappointed he never scored on Tuesday, his running stats were fantastic but he really should have scored five. He had three chances when it's just him and the keeper. One goes in and hopefully the gates open."

Berahino could have left had Albion not pulled the plug on a B£15million deal to sign West Ham's Diafra Sakho over concerns with his fitness in August.

They are close to a loan deal for Southampton's Jay Rodriguez but Albion have only signed Matt Phillips from QPR and Everton loanee Brendan Galloway.

Several club-record bids for players have been tabled, but supporters have been left frustrated.

Pulis said: "I'm a custodian of the club and they are the real people. They have a right to say what they say, you have to accept it and I've always been one who will accept it.

"We have stagnated, for all sorts of reasons. Now's the time to get the players in and push the club forward."

Kane Wilson, 16, could become the first player born in the 21st century to appear in the Premier League, with Galloway struggling with a hamstring injury. The teenage defender made his debut in the EFL Cup defeat to Northampton on Tuesday and only picked up his GCSE results on Thursday.

Chris Brunt is also out with a knee injury but Ben Foster and Jonny Evans will return after being rested for the trip to the Cobblers.

Stewart Downing is back where he belongs as he tries to help Middlesbrough establish themselves as a Premier League club once again.

The 32-year-old England international came through the ranks at his home-town club, sitting on the bench as a teenager when they won the League Cup in 2004, later cutting his teeth in European football and making himself a regular first-teamer at the Riverside Stadium.

Boro's fall from grace - they were relegated from the top flight at the end of the 2008-09 season - saw him head for Aston Villa in a B£12million move, and it took him six years to work his way home via Liverpool and West Ham.

A season in the Sky Bet Championship proved challenging, but Karanka has seen enough during the opening weeks of the new season to be confident that his B#5.5million signing will thrive amongst the big boys once again.

The Spaniard said: "He is really important because he is enjoying it. I can feel that he is enjoying playing again in the Premier League. You can feel that he is more comfortable now than he was last season in the Championship.

"He is an important player and he's an example for us, especially for the players on the pitch. He has played a lot of games in the Premier League, so he is a good reference for us."

A left winger by trade, Downing thrived in a central midfielder role for the Hammers, a position in which he was asked to play by Karanka in Wednesday night's 2-1 EFL Cup second round defeat at Fulham.

He is likely to return to the left side of a three-man attacking midfield at West Brom on Sunday but his versatility, as well as his experience, is something the head coach appreciates.

Karanka said: "He can play in different positions and it's those kind of players I like because now in the Premier League, he is playing really, really well."

Downing is not the only member of the squad who may have to demonstrate a capacity to adapt this weekend with all three of the club's specialist left-backs missing through injury.

George Friend is nursing a calf strain, new signing Fabio da Silva a knee problem and James Husband is recovering from shoulder surgery.

Defender Bernardo Espinosa is available after overcoming his own knee injury, but Karanka will have to ask a man not accustomed to the role to fill in at left-back.