Chelsea transfer rumour: Blues pondering £20m bid for West Brom forward Saido Berahino in January

Chelsea have added West Bromwich Albion forward Saido Berahino to their wanted list and are pondering a move during the January transfer window. The striker has long been linked with a move away from the Hawthorns, with Tottenham Hotspur failing with a move during the summer transfer window.

According to The Daily Telegraph, the Blues have identified him as a potential striker target and are pondering a £20m ($30.4m) move in the upcoming transfer window. Jose Mourinho is keen to strengthen his squad after a disappointing first-half of the season, which sees the Stamford Bridge outfit languishing in 16<sup>th place with 11 points from 12 games. The Blues have already lost seven games this campaign, which is four more than they lost during the entirety of the 2014/15 season.

The Portuguese manager is set to be backed by the club to strengthen in January, and with Radamel Falcao's time at the club reportedly coming to an end, Berahino is seen as a suitable option to strengthen the forward line to provide back up and challenge first choice striker Diego Costa. The manager is under considerable amount of pressure to turn Chelsea's fortunes and will be keen to address the lack of goals.

The 22-year-old forward had an impressive 2014/15 campaign, scoring 20 goals in all competitions and has scored three goals in 10 games thus far this campaign. Berahino was the subject of a strong interest from Tottenham in the summer, with Baggies chairman Jeremy Peace rejecting four offers from the north London club. The striker had threatened to go on strike, but has since sorted out his issues with the club and returned to the first-team setup.

Apart from Berahino, the reigning Premier League champions have also been linked with a move for Napoli forward Gonzalo Higuain, who has since quashed rumours regarding a move away from the Serie A club.