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Daryl Dike scores overhead kick to continue strong Barnsley campaign

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Daryl Dike needed little time to make an impact off the bench for Barnsley on Wednesday, scoring the opening goal for the club in an important victory.

Dike delivered the go-ahead goal in the 65th minute at Huddersfield Town, contributing his ninth league finish for the EFL Championship side in a 1-0 win. The Orlando City loanee replaced Dominik Frieser at halftime and moved Barnsley one step closer to a place in the promotion playoffs.

After Barnsley kept the pressure on in the second-half, Dike made the most of a loose ball in the box. The U.S. Men’s National Team striker jumped up and hit a shot into the bottom-right corner, breaking the deadlock.

It was Dike’s fourth goal in April and his second in the past three appearances for Barnsley. Valerien Ismael’s side would grind out the victory on the road, moving six points clear of seventh place Reading for the final promotion playoff spot in the second-tier.

The club has three matches remaining on its league schedule and could clinch its playoff berth with a victory over Rotherham United this weekend, paired with a Reading draw or loss to Swansea City.

As for Dike, he will hope to continue racking up the goals for Barnsley, who are seeking a first appearance in the Premier League since 2002.

Comments

  1. I think Daryl needs to get a run of games with the national team and honestly, I want to see him paired up with Sargent against at least Concacaf, and maybe build the team up to face tough Euro and South American opponents but those two could combine with a midfield of Pulisic & Reyna on the wings, and McKennie and Adams in the middle for a very good and balanced front 6!

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    • So far against CONCACAF opponents (weak end of the league) we’ve had little problem scoring…but have struggled to keep a clean sheet. And your recommendation is to weaken our defense for another striker. Makes since.

      If we ever get to a point where Adams, McKennie, an Musah aren’t available than I’d be willing to try a 4-4-2 with Dike & Sargent….but until then I don’t see the value of sitting Musah for another striker.

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      • We been giving up a goal each time we mess with the starting CBs
        Each time we have been scored, Ream was present. He rides the bench for club but for our MNT he seems to always get playing time. Never mind he is 33 y.o.

      • Can’t score if you don’t have the ball. Plus Daryl would keep possession. That goal vs Jamaica was a counter in which Reggie Cannon didn’t press, he stood still with his legs ready for a nutmeg, and then the Jamaican attacker finished a tight angle. Versus Panama a big of the same, Cannon didn’t press the guy on the wing, and then it caught Miazga and Ream off guard, Ream as someone said earlier was involved in both goals in this match.

        So maybe you don’t see this as the best option, but you can’t deny maybe after the 65th minute this is a formation we should move to and kill off teams. Against Honduras, Costa Rica, Canada, Jamaica and such this team would do so much damage!

      • how is a 442 less defensive than a 433? this is silly talk. half my beef with GB is i think 433 is naive and we should be playing something more balanced and sensible like 442 or 451. particularly until we find 4 defenders who can actually play defense.

    • How is Dike better in possession than Musah? You’re also throwing Reyna and Pulisic into defensive positions against teams desperately trying to score down late. Both are good at pressing defenders who have recently won possession but average at actually defending in their own half. Dike’s possession ability is pretty limited at least at Barnsley because they really don’t have any desire to have possession. Maybe I am misunderstanding but your lineup would be much better suited to chase a game we trail than to try hold a lead.
      ————————————
      As for Ream, he’s on the pitch for the Panama goals and the NIreland goal but he’s not the player most at fault in any of them. Just saying Ream is the reason we aren’t having clean sheets is giving Cannon, Robinson, Steffen, and Miazga free passes.

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      • i have run the numbers before and the CBs who can really play are like CCV, Long, and Zimmerman. if you want to lose you run out ream, brooks, or miazga. if you are confused run their per game GAA or how many 2+ goals nights they are on the field for. the argument goes the lousy 3 can pass a ball but that does not show up in the assists column. long is the one constantly involved in goals or assists. for a team that supposedly is into analytics we ignore some basic numbers.

    • how many games’ indulgence do you get for club form without international production? he earned prior caps for club form before. you don’t get endless caps for the same excuse. at some point you face the wondo/twellman question of does it translate.

      i favor NT performance over club form so I would take others who have produced in the shirt to NL and send him to GC to see if he can begin to produce. i wouldn’t take strikers without international bona fides to NL because you blow one game and the tournament is effectively over. like qualifying you need people no doubt they will score in that context. this is not an all star team playing exhibitions. you need people who WILL do the job, not just who show promise.

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    • IV the 4-4-2 as described would be less defensive because of the players on the pitch and where they would play. You’d take away a CM in Musah and force Reyna and Pulisic into defensive spots that aren’t their optimal roll. If you wanted to move Wes to RM and play Adams and Musah as CMs with one or the other of Gio/Reyna on the other side you could make a case, but now I’m taking off one of the two best possession players in NT history to pair Dike and Sargent. I’m good, I’ll stick in my 4-3-3 and just hold the ball.

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      • y’all ignore the value of shape and the formation itself. 442 is simply more bodies in the midfield for defenders to pass to and the other team to work past. even if you think a particular AM wouldn’t play defense hard. well, the response then is enforce the expectation. the AM defends or is replaced.

    • The other team can’t score if they don’t have the ball. If you’re trying to kill off a game a 4-3-3 pretty easily morphs into a 4-5-1 by just moving those wings back a few yards when we are not in possession.

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  2. He scores off the bench, he scores when he starts. Not bad for a player who’s scored more goals in a JV league than his lone, abbreviated season in the MLS. One day, the US fan base will learn what Orlando City fans already know. ‘This guy is good!’ The doormat in front of Dike’s house says ‘Pessimists and doubters welcomed!’ Yeah, Clean ya’ boots on dem hataz! I hope he’s healthy and not run down for the NL, or the GC.

    Reply
    • I’d wager the Championship is right now a better quality league than MLS. It’s also an incredibly long season of 46 matches (23 home and away fixtures in a 24 team league. The fact of the matter is that Dike is going to be transferred, probably for the $20 million or more Orlando is looking for.

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      • I think your missing that he’s taunting the troll that said Dike was playing in a JV league a couple weeks ago.

      • IV- Bobby Wood hasn’t been called in since ‘18. Soto isn’t playing for the Canaries U23s and didn’t score in Olympic qualifying. Ferreira had 1g in qualifying, which is the same as he had in abbreviated MLS season. Siebatcheu has goals but isn’t even a starter in the Swiss League. Siebatcheu has just as many caps as Dike, and just as many goals (0). There’s already enough points of debate about Hoppe. He’s getting the benefit of the doubt like Sargent. That leaves Zardes, or the next American CF who’s in form. For you, 2 cameos, no starts from Dike is all you need to see. This comment is as clueless as Super Nintendo & Gabe’s. All of the 9s, in the US pool are different, with different skill sets. So yeah, the fan base wants all the players to score for the USMNT. (Understatement) Dike is the only one consistently putting it together. Results from January to now, speak for themselves, and my hope is he keeps it going past the summer.

      • no, there is plenty of history of twellmans and wondos who despite dozens of league goals a season could barely score an international goal on sweden C, and in the case of wondo, missed the all time sitter of a belgium chance. so i favor the ones who have done it for us.

  3. I have a feeling we’ve seen the last of Dike in an Orlando kit. If Barnsley don’t exercise their purchase option, someone will swoop. He’s young, raw and has all the tools.

    Reply

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