Holidays can wait, says U21s striker Saido Berahino

Monday 11 May 2015
Berahino is looking forward to joining the likes of Harry Kane and Nathan Redmond
Saido Berahino says he has no plans for a break until after a busy summer with the Three Lions.

The West Bromwich Albion striker is expected to be part of Gareth Southgate’s England Under-21s squad to travel to Czech Republic for the Euro Finals in June.

They meet up in early June to start their preparations for the competition and with the Premier League campaign only finishing a week before, Berahino is ready to get straight back into it.

UEFA European U21 Championship

The Finals 17-30 June 2015
Czech Republic
Group A: Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Serbia
Group B: England, Italy, Portugal, Sweden

"There will be no time for a holiday," he revealed. 

"There will be a little break after the season ends, but it will just be for a week and after that I’ll join up with the Under-21s, if selected. 

"All the lads have been kept in the loop as to what’s going to happen regarding the schedule and various other things. 

"From then on preparation kicks in and we’ve got to focus on doing absolutely everything we can to do well in this big tournament we’ve got coming up.

"The time is fast approaching and I just can’t wait until it starts now."

Berahino has not been involved with the U21s squad since he was part of the group which beat Croatia in the play-offs last October.

West Bromwich Albion striker Saido Berahino.

Saido Berahino has been a regular goalscorer with the Baggies this season

His form at the Hawthorns saw him involved with Roy Hodgson’s senior squad in November and he missed the U21s’ double-header with Czech Republic and Germany through injury.

But he has no concerns about slotting straight back into the group, having grown up with so many of them through the various England development teams over the years.

"The great thing about the U21s squad is that we all gel together very well and it’s a fantastic atmosphere within the group," he revealed, speaking at last week’s Together For England Roadshow in West Bromwich.

"There’s a lot of players there that are really close to each other and even though I’ve not been in the squad for a while, I’ve been in touch with lots of the lads. 

"They’ve been doing well in the fixtures that they’ve had and I’ve obviously been keeping a close eye on how they’ve been getting on. 

“We’re all just looking forward to the summer and if selected, I can’t wait to get back involved again, prepare for this tournament and get going.”

Aside from football, the 21-year-old has also been busy launching the Saido Berahino Foundation, which was launched in London last week.

Berahino attended the Together For England Roadshow in West Bromwich last week

Working in conjunction with the WaterAid charity, the Foundation aims to help people across the world to receive clean water and sanitation.

And it is something which is close to the former Peterborough United, Brentford and Northampton Town loanee, who moved to Birmingham from Burundi as a child.

"It’s incredibly important to me," he revealed at the event, which helped to raise awareness of disability football in the Midlands.

"The aim is to help the unfortunate ones that can’t have what we have. 

"The smallest things in life that we all take for granted, there’s people around the world that don’t have access to any of it. 

"I’m an ambassador for WaterAid now – they try and raise awareness and by 2030 they want to help each and every person around the world to have clean water and good health and sanitation. 

Saido Berahino's last goal for the U21s came in the victory over Croatia last October

"That’s their mission. I’ve partnered up with them to try and help that and I want to be able to help the people that were less fortunate than myself. 

"I would love to go back and visit one day, and try and help as much as possible. I haven’t been back since I left and that’s why this is so close to my heart – when I do go back I want to help the people there and touch their hearts. 

"I want to show them that there can be a bright future for everyone."

By Nicholas Veevers Content Manager - FA Owned Channels