Saido Berahino

Saido Berahino (born 4 August 1993) is a professional footballer who plays as a striker for AEL Limassol and the Burundi national team.

Having fled his native Burundi as a child, he received political asylum in Birmingham and credits football with helping him integrate into English society. Berahino joined West Bromwich Albion at the age of 11 and turned professional seven years later. He spent time out on loan at Football League clubs Northampton Town, Brentford and Peterborough United.

Berahino made his first starts for West Bromwich Albion in the 2013–14 season, with highlights of that campaign including a hat-trick against Newport County and the winning goal at Old Trafford against Manchester United. In his second full season, he recorded 20 goals in 45 matches across all competitions. Following that campaign, Berahino became involved in a lengthy transfer saga involving Tottenham Hotspur, straining his relationships with manager Tony Pulis and chairman Jeremy Peace. He was criticised for his conduct and fell out of favour, scoring only seven goals in the 2015–16 season; he did not score a competitive goal from 27 February 2016 to 28 August 2018, a goal drought of 913 days. In January 2017, he joined Stoke City for a fee of £12 million, potentially rising to £15 million. Stoke were relegated from the Premier League at the end of the 2017–18 season and after a single season in the EFL Championship, Berahino was released by Stoke with three years left on his contract.

Berahino represented England at all youth levels from under-16 to under-21. He was part of the England under-17 team that won the 2010 European Championship. He was called up for the first time to the senior team in November 2014 but did not play. He switched his international allegiance to Burundi in August 2018 and scored on his international debut in September. He captained the team at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.