Stoke make £17m bid for Saido Berahino rising to £20m

Determined not to lose out to Crystal Palace, the Potters have tabled an offer of £17m up front rising to £20m with add-ons for performance.

Palace were readying a bid in the same region after their deal for Liverpool's Christian Benteke hit a snag.

The Eagles were hoping to swoop in while Albion and Stoke remained deadlocked on valuation.

But Stoke boss Mark Hughes has wanted Berahino since January and now the Staffordshire club have returned with a better offer after being told their initial valuation of £16m was not enough.

Albion chairman Jeremy Peace has always wanted north of £20m for the in-demand Berahino, who rejected a bumper four-year contract from the club last week.

Stoke's bid is nearing the value Peace would be willing to sell Berahino for, but the Express & Star understands Albion are waiting to hear if other suitors can better the bid.

Watford have pulled out of the race but Palace are interested, and Albion expect the rivalry to drive up the price.

The Baggies are confident they can now get more than £20m for the young Englishman.

They do not want to sell the striker cheaply during a summer market buoyed by the incoming £5.1billion TV deal.

They are also reluctant to sell until they have a replacement lined up because that would leave just Salomon Rondon and Rickie Lambert as the only options up front.

Albion are willing to splash the cash they make from Berahino on a deal for Diafra Sakho.

The club had initially baulked at West Ham's £15m asking price, but now they believe they can get more for Berahino they are willing to break their transfer record in order to land the 26-year-old.

Sakho has handed in a transfer request but the Hammers do not wish to part with him until they buy a new striker themselves.

Although Peace is currently negotiating a sale of the club with potential buyers from China, transfer dealings continue to run as normal with technical director Nick Hammond overseeing proceedings.