Newcastle United Opinion: Why the Magpies should go for Saido Berahino?

According to a report from the Guardian, Stoke City are prepared to offload striker Saido Berahino after the former England U21 international was arrested on charges of drunk driving in London on Monday morning.

Saido Berahino, 25, has failed to live up to expectations on and off the pitch at Stoke City since joining from West Brom in January 2017.

He has scored a paltry five goals in two years at the bet365 Stadium, with poor form coupled with disciplinary problems off the field making the forward one of the worst signings in the history of Stoke.

During his West Brom days, Saido Berahino was banned from driving in 2015 after pleading guilty to drunk driving and served an eight-match ban from football in 2016 after failing a drugs test.

With persistent off field problems and fitness hampering his once-promising career, any club will think twice before making a move for the 25-year-old forward.

However, Newcastle United must take a punt on Berahino and give him a chance to resurrect his stuttering career.

Newcastle United broke their transfer record after 14 long years by signing Miguel Almiron from Atlanta United in January. While we have only seen a glimpse of Almiron, the high-profile acquisition of the Paraguayan in midst of the season suggests how toothless have the Magpies been in the attack.

Despite breaking the transfer record for Almiron, Newcastle still lack quality going forward. Joselu has proven to be a disaster since signing from Stoke in 2017, while Yoshinori Muto hasn’t adapted to the Premier League well after making a summer switch from the Bundesliga.

That has led to Salomon Rondon shouldering the responsibility of goalscoring and while the on-loan West Brom striker has done well, Rafael Benitez’s men have managed just 22 league goals this term.

That’s when signing Berahino would be valuable for Newcastle as he’ll add more quality and depth to the Magpies attacking options.Berahino’s career has stalled in the last few years due to a number of factors but he is 25 and has the time in his favour to put things back on track.

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A quick, powerful goal scorer, the Burundi-born star is known for his ability to run at defences and link up with his teammates with short exchanges in and around the penalty area.

Conclusion

The former West Brom man is a clever striker and would fit right in there at Newcastle. Berahino is an immensely talented player and there is no doubt that he can find his mojo back in English football under an astute tactician like Rafael Benitez.

Hence, the Magpies should take a gamble on Berahino in the summer.