West Bromwich Albion 0-0 Southampton

Saido Berahino was West Brom's top scorer last season

Saido Berahino returned to action for West Brom 10 days after threatening to go on strike as the Baggies held on for a draw with Southampton.

The hosts had a strong penalty appeal when West Brom winger Callum McManaman evaded the lunge of Matt Targett.

But with Dusan Tadic a constant threat for the superior Saints, Jay Rodriguez headed wide from the Serbian's cross.

Berahino received a mixed response after coming on as a substitute, but after missing three games, was rusty.

The 22-year-old's second-half introduction engineered a spark in a largely drab game, and a commitment to defence by both teams ensured little goalmouth incident.

Southampton's point earned them a third consecutive clean sheet for the first time since November 2014, but West Brom have now only scored three goals in five Premier League games.

Reaction to this match and the rest of Saturday's action

West Brom in need of Saido's goals

Berahino's re-integration came after the England Under-21 international said he would never play under chairman Jeremy Peace again.

Dusan Tadic delivered plenty of crosses into the box but they often could not find a target, shown in red. Key passes (leading to a shot) are shown in yellow

The threat came after the club blocked a move to Tottenham, and, after Pulis hinted he may use the forward, he was brought on 10 minutes into the second half.

Despite a few boos as he warmed up, Berahino was given a largely positive reception and injected urgency into the game as the home fans found their voice.

Southampton resisted the West Brom improvement, and Victor Wanyama - who has also been unsettled after interest from Tottenham - offered the Saints added ballast in midfield on his return to the team.

But West Brom will hope that they can keep Berahino onside and they need last season's top goalscorer to get them firing again.

"It was a positive reaction [from the fans]," said Pulis. "We've all made mistakes and looked back and thought we should have done something differently.

"Saido's made a couple of mistakes, and given his time again, he wouldn't make those mistakes, I hope. We move on. It's been very difficult for us because of stuff going on away from football, and then we had the international break."

West Brom boss Tony Pulis said he would speak to McManaman (left), who he says dived for the penalty appeal

McManaman's strange penalty appeal

With the last four previous matches between the two teams yielding only three goals, chances were likely to be at a premium and in a subdued first-half, McManaman's penalty appeal was the biggest talking point.

The Baggies winger was put clear by Rickie Lambert and as he made his way into the area, Targett lunged at him.

McManaman managed to touch the ball past the Southampton defender, but before contact came, he seemed to fling himself over his opponent in a theatrical manner, perhaps adding to the decision of referee Stuart Attwell, who waved appeals away.

Pulis, who initially joined those appeals, said afterwards that the referee got it right.

"I think Callum McManaman dives first before the player touches him," added Pulis. "I'll be having a word with him about that. It was a good decision by the referee."

Man of the Match: Dusan Tadic (Southampton)

Dusan Tadic (right) had a largely frustrating day after Southampton failed to capitalise on his crosses

Manager reaction

Southampton boss Ronald Koeman: "I'm a little bit disappointed because we were the better team. We had a lot of ball possession, we didn't create a lot of chances, maybe the best one was in the first half with Jay Rodriguez. In the second half we were not clinical enough.

"It was like we were the home team today. It was a difficult game, but we expect this, if we can't win then don't lose."

Stats you need to know

• Southampton completed 522 passes in this game; the most made in a Premier League away game since their return to the league in 2012-13.

• The Baggies have kept a clean sheet in over half of their 23 Premier League games under Tony Pulis (13 - 57%).

• No side have kept more clean sheets in the Premier League since Pulis's first game in charge of the Baggies in January 2015 (13).

• Southampton have won just two of their last 11 Premier League games (drew four, lost five).

• Saints have now failed to score in four of their last six Premier League games.