Berahino deserves praise and criticism on his actions alone

Saido Berahino is now back in training, just six days after saying that he would never play for West Bromwich Albion’s chairman Jeremy Peace ever again. It seems as if a young man lost his patience and said something he didn’t really mean. In terms of transgressions all over the world, and even in the hyperbolic world of football, what he did was hardly the most egregious. Berahino wanted to leave for Spurs, and Peace quite reasonably only wanted to allow it at a price that suited him. Berahino was foolish to react in such a way, but he is 22, with a short career ahead of him. What he did was wrong, but perfectly understandable.

If you consider the things that you got up to at 22, the chances are that you’ll have done far worse than he managed at that age (indeed, Berahino has too, having admitted a charge of drink driving in 2014). A year out of university, perhaps, the chances that you achieved as much as he had by that age are slim, however hard you tried. His indiscipline saw him complain about his company’s chairman in public. The vast majority of people have done similar, or worse than that. Still, nobody would really find it unjust if Berahino was fined a couple of weeks’ wages for this tweet, and nobody would really be surprised if Berahino and his colleagues manage to put it behind them until a suitable bid from one club or another arrives.

Berahino joined West Brom at 11. He made his debut for the side in the 2012/13 season in the League Cup, and in the Premier League the following year. He scored nine goals in 35 appearances, and in the 2014/15 season he managed 20 in 45 games. That’s an impressive return for any player except for the most talented strikers at the very best clubs. When managers like Arsene Wenger are decrying the lack of European strikers, here is one who outscored Olivier Giroud and Wayne Rooney last season. There might be mitigating factors for both Rooney and Giroud with their records last year, but it still demonstrates that - at just 22 - here is a player who has the potential to challenge Harry Kane for an England squad place.

If Berahino continues his form from last season, and perhaps ignores the distraction of his flounce and the upset of West Brom fans, he has the chance to play regular football ahead of Euro 2016. An even better season than last could win him a place in the squad for the tournament, and he might repair his relationship with the crowd. They are the most susceptible demographic when it comes to his goalscoring, after all. It should not be forgotten that at no point as Berahino made criticisms of his supporters, manager or team-mates. This will be an easier return to first-team action than it is for other players who try to force their way out.

Above is almost 500 words of text that accurately sums up the situation in which Berahino, Peace, West Brom and fans find themselves. There is room to argue reasons for the strength of feeling about him, and some might treat his outburst with such indignation that they never want him to play for the side again. Fair enough. But it is also 500 words that have managed to avoid bringing up how he came to be in England, which is significantly different from the majority of people in the country.

Berahino was granted asylum in England when he was 10. His father was killed in the Burundi Civil war in 1997. There are more details about how hard his life was when he arrived, and also the barely fathomable hardships that he experienced, the kind of experiences that few people born in England will endure. But, he doesn’t ask for pity or sympathy, he is merely open about his experiences when he chooses to be. In April 2015, he set up a foundation to support Water Aid, using his experiences in Burundi and England to use his influence to help in a way he knows can make a difference. He is also reported to do work for those facing the challenges of addition in his local area, and this receives relatively little publicity or praise. So, Berahino is putting in the hours to improve the world with his own efforts, and he also has his own personal failings. Just like most of us, then.

For World Refugee Day in 2014, Berahino released a video, saying, “‘I thank England for giving me a second chance and making it easy to follow the dream I have always had to become a footballer.” It’s a noble sentiment, and it’s easy to understand why he is grateful. But really, he owes England no thanks at all. It is England’s obligation to take in those who qualify for asylum. More importantly, it is the moral thing to do, to receive those who are not safe in their own countries. Moreover, it is something that England can easily afford, and if money is scarce for such things, then the problem is with politics, not the scope of England’s resources. Giving anyone asylum is not a loan or a favour to be repaid; it is the least a country with an imperial past can do.

This week, some people used the Syrian refugee crisis, and the image of a dead child, to tell Berahino that he should be grateful for what he has in this country, and keep in mind where he comes from. This is a disgrace. Berahino has as much right to live in England as anyone else, and he is free to live as he wants. Sometimes it will be positive, other times it will be negative, but to treat him differently because of his past is plain, bitter discrimination.