West Brom striker Daryl Dike posts delighted reaction to redemptive performance in Middlesbrough win
Daryl Dike posted a delighted reaction after his brace secured a much-needed West Brom win against Middlesbrough on Saturday.
The American had only scored three Baggies goals in a year since his big-money arrival in the January window last season amid appalling injury luck, and appeared to be out of favour with Carlos Corberan as the club entered a rough run of form.
After the Albion boss signed a contract extension to end Leeds United links poor fortune had contributed to losing twice and drawing once to fall off the pace in the play-off race, but both player and team surged back into form with an early quick-fire double in the 2-0 win over third-placed Boro.
Posting on his personal Twitter account after his match-winning performance on Saturday (25 February) the striker wrote: “A resilient performance from the squad! Man do I love this feeling!”
Good times
Dike probably appreciates the feeling more than most given what he has dealt with since he returned to England from Orlando City, but especially after only playing 37-minutes total in games against Blackburn and Watford which only recorded a single point.
West Brom needed the points just to stay in 10th after falling out of the play-off places, and against a side that had won five in a row and scored 14 times along the way it was an impressive return to winning ways.
Dike provided the perfect start by scoring twice inside the first 10 minutes, for his first in over a month, and from there Michael Carrick’s side could never recover.
With a four-game stretch of fixtures against teams struggling towards the bottom of the Championship in Hull, Wigan, Huddersfield and Cardiff, there is now an excellent opportunity to rack up some points and push back up the table.
Corberan’s season at The Hawthorns has been spectacular in comparison to the drudgery of the Steve Bruce era, but there were some suggestions it had hit a wall in the past fortnight.
So with a timely win and some winnable games on paper coming up those fears can possibly be put to rest sooner than later, and if Dike can remain in the goals the chances of that will be that much greater.
In other West Brom news, a Hollywood actor sent a reassuring message to one Baggies star after recent disappointment.