Tottenham prepare £18m bid for West Bromwich Albion striker Saido Berahino

Tottenham are planning a £18m ($25m) bid for West Bromwich Albion striker Saido Berahino in a last attempt to prise the forward away from the Hawthorns. The north London club had three bids rejected for the player, with the Baggies holding out in their decision to keep the player till at least the January transfer window.

The Mirror reports that chairman Jeremy Peace is the one holding the transfer back but manager Tony Pulis is ready to move him along and invest the money in other players and refresh his squad. Spurs are in the market for a striker to provide back-up for Harry Kane, who has played almost every minute of Spurs' league campaign thus far and would need some rest as the business end of the season looms.

Chelsea have also been linked with Berahino, who has insinuated time and again that he wants to leave the Hawthorns, even coming out on Twitter last summer to criticise West Brom's decision to hold on to him. The player only has 18 months left in his current contract and is likely to be sold in the summer if not in the current window.

Berahino is believed to be interested in a move to London. With Spurs battling for top honours in the league, he will be an astute pick by Mauricio Pochettino, who has an eye for talent as he showed with his acquisition of the impressive Dele Alli in the previous transfer window. The youngster has taken the league by storm, scoring a goal-of-the-season contender against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park last weekend.

Berahino has only made eight starts in the league this season, scoring three and assisting one thus far, with Pulis unwilling to make him first choice given his recent behaviour. A move would be great business for both clubs and a consensus is expected to be reached this week.