Pulis disagrees with Berahino over player’s fitness

Matt Stead

West Brom misfit Saido Berahino is at odds with the Baggies over his fitness.

The club and player, who are in contract talks, disagree over his condition as he continues to be left out of the squad.

The striker posted a video on Instagram – which he has since deleted – late on Thursday night of him jogging, with the caption “They say i aint fit #OK”.

But boss Tony Pulis has repeatedly stated Berahino, who has not played since September 10, is not fit enough to be included in his side having been ruled overweight earlier this season.

He was twice sent to France on a personal training programme but has still failed to make the bench and is unlikely to feature against Derby in the FA Cup on Saturday.

Pulis said: “I don’t think he’s physically ready, no. We’ll see, I’ll pick the team tomorrow.

“He’s just got to step up. There are lots of things that Saido has to do but, as I’ve said before, if Saido was at his maximum and was clear in his mind what he wanted to do and everything was right for him he’d be in the team.

“That’s what we’re asking him to do, to make sure he’s ready mentally and physically, and when he’s ready mentally and physically he’s as good as anything.

“You get fed up of talking about it. Good, let’s move on to something else.”

Berahino’s contract expires at the end of the season and the club have offered him a new deal which is likely to at least double his current wages of £20,000-a-week.

He scored 20 goals in 2014-15 to spark bids from Tottenham but those offers were rejected by Albion, leading to Berahino threatening to go on strike.

Crystal Palace and Stoke also bid around £20million in the summer but the Baggies refused to sell as they could not find a replacement.

The 23-year-old has scored just one Premier League goal since October 2015.