Tottenham Step Up Chase for Premier League Star

Spurs boss, Mauricio Pochettino has stepped up a last minute chase for Victor Wanyama, the Southampton midfielder.

Pochettino hopes to sign Wanyama and West Brom striker, Saido Berahino before 6 pm on Tuesday when the Premier League's summer transfer window for this season closes.

The former Southampton coach, Pochettino wants to be re-united with Wanyama and he has told club chairman Daniel Levy to make a formal bid for the Kenyan international. Wanyama has openly declared that he wants to leave Southampton but the Saints coach, Ronald Koeman, is not ready to sell their 24-year-old midfielder to Spurs.

However, Wanyama was conspicuously missing from the squad that faced Norwich City in their last Premier League match. He was purportedly left out of the game because he wants to force the team's management to release him so he can join his former coach at White Hart Lane. In his absence, Southampton moved up nine places on the table after last week's 3-0 defeat of Norwich City.

This is the second time Wanyama will be absent after he was omitted from the squad that played in the Europa League match against FC Midtjylland during the week. The Saints boss, Koeman, claimed that Wanyama had a stomach infection and was not physically or mentally fit to play.

Tottenham are prepared to make a very strong attempt to sign Wanyama within the next few hours after their earlier bids were dismissed. Southampton has already made it clear that neither Wanyama nor the Manchester United, target Sadio Mane, will be allowed to leave St Mary's this season.

Southampton has made several sales of star players to top-flight opponents in the Premier League. This has obviously disrupted most of their plans over the last three years. But whether Wanyama leaves the club in this transfer window or the one in January, the club's management will have to the change the policy that the Saints players can easily be sold out to the highest bidder.

Meanwhile, Tottenham still believe they can strike a deal with West Brom for the transfer of Saido Berahino. Spurs is insisting on ₤22 million while Albion is asking for ₤30 million. Just like Wanyama, Berahino, England's former under-21 striker has been out of action for the club in their last two Premier League matches.

Spurs is making a third offer the young striker and the final deal could cost up to ₤25 million, with several add-ons. Although the Baggies chairman, Jeremy Peace, has insisted that Berahino is not leaving the Hawthorns, reports have it that team manager, Tony Pulis, is willing to let him go.

If West Brom finally allow Berahino to go, Pulis has some very ambitious plans for the money Spurs will leave on the table. One of such plans is a move for Malaga's midfielder, Ignacio Camacho. Albion wants to have Camacho on loan while Malaga would prefer a permanent transfer that will improve the club's finances.