West Brom reject Saido Berahino transfer request following official Tottenham Hotspur bid

West Brom have rejected Saido Berahino's written transfer request to leave the club. Tottenham Hotspur made an official bid for the striker last week but the Baggies turned down the offer, insisting in a statement that selling the player "is not on the agenda".

The 22 year old was subsequently left out of the WBA squad for the 3-2 defeat to Chelsea, with manager Tony Pulis admitting after the match speculation that over the player's future had become disruptive.

With just eight days of the transfer window remaining Berahino appears keen to join Tottenham. But a club statement released on Monday read: "West Bromwich Albion have received a written transfer request from Saido Berahino. The request has been rejected and the club's position remains unchanged from that outlined in the statement from chairman Jeremy Peace of 18 August."

While West Brom have strengthened their forward options in former Liverpool striker Rickie Lambert and club record signing Solomon Rondon, the club has explicitly told Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy they do not want to sell.

"We have no interest in selling Saido, which is what I have told Daniel Levy," read the statement from Peace. "I know we are living in an age where no club can say 'never' about the possibility of selling a player. However, the prospect of selling Saido is simply not on our agenda. We are going forward with Saido very much in our plans and still striving to add players to improve the balance of our squad."

Tottenham's pursuit of Berahino has enraged Pulis, who has labelled the timing of their interest "absolutely ridiculous", while calling for the transfer window to close before the season starts.

"Why are we talking about Saido? Because of the transfer window. It's absolutely ridiculous," Pulis said after the defeat at the Hawthorns, the Guardian reported. "For it to be going through the start of the season is ridiculous. We should be talking about this game," the Albion manager added.

"This wouldn't be an issue, a problem. Saido is a great lad. It happens where it can be disruptive, and it has been disruptive. I had a good chat with him yesterday [on Saturday] and he's fine, no problems, but it's the transfer window. Why can't we have a system where it finishes before the start of the season."

Tottenham have already added a forward to their ranks this summer in Cameroon international Clinton Njie but manager Mauricio Pochettino is keen to further strengthen his attack. The club's other summer recruits have all been defensive additions: Toby Alderweireld, Kieran Trippier and Kevin Wimmer.