New Stoke City boy Berahino relishing chance to prove his point

Saido Berahino is itching to take to the field and play a role in downing former club West Brom this Saturday after making his debut for new side Stoke City on Wednesday night.

The former England Under-21 international stepped of the bench for the last 25 minutes of their 1-1 draw with Everton and nearly marked the occasion with a late goal before Seamus Coleman cleared off the line.

It did however mark the start of what would apparently represent a fresh start for the 23-year-old after a difficult last few years at the Hawthorns.

(Photo by James Baylis – AMA/Getty Images)

Berahino was the subject of four bids from Tottenham in the summer of 2015 before the player himself tried to engineer a move away and declared he would never play for the club again.

He did pull on the Baggies shirt again although there remained questions over his fitness levels.

But with Stoke City manager Tony Pulis handing him a lifeline, Berahino is determined to repay that faith, continuing against his former club this weekend.

“To be fair, I can’t wait for the game because the boys have been fantastic in the last two games against Manchester United and Everton, so we can go there full of confidence,” he said.

“Of course it will be strange for me going back there again, but I won’t allow anything to distract me from my job which is to help Stoke City try and win the game.

“I will hopefully be able to get some more playing time under my belt, which is what I need now to build up my fitness levels.

“The manager is really looking after me here and I am sure that it won’t be too long until I am in a position to hopefully start games.”