Everton scouts blown away by Barnsley loan star Daryl Dike
Everton have set their sights on Barnsley loan star Daryl Dike after scouts were blown away by the striker’s performances in the Championship, according to EuroSport.
The news outlet claims Dike, 20, has caught the eye of Everton’s recruitment experts after a series of impressive displays at Oakwell since joining Barnsley on loan from MLS outfit Orlando City on February 1.
It is understood Dike, who has five goals in 11 Championship matches, is due to return to Orlando at the end of this season and the Florida club value the young striker at £14.5million ($20million).
Exciting young talent
When Barnsley signed Dike in the winter, they confirmed on their website they have the option to sign the USA international permanently.
However, it has since emerged that fee could be beyond Barnsley’s reach with Orlando Sentinel journalist Julia Poe reporting via the MLS website: “The price tag at the end of the option to buy is $20million (£14.5million) and that’s only for 80 per cent of his rights, so Orlando City would still hold onto 20 per cent and they’d get to cash in 20 per cent of whatever future sale occurred. It’s a really, really high price tag.”
Barnsley’s club-record signing was made in the late 1990s when they signed Gjorgji Hristov for just over £1.5million so that fee for Dike seems to be a bit out of their realm.
The Yorkshire club’s chief executive Dane Murphy has recently told The Athletic that Dike “has a wealth of talent and he hasn’t reached his heights yet”.
Murphy added that signing Dike could be unrealistic for Barnsley. He said: “Daryl is receiving global attention, so is the club.
“Orlando now has a player that can come back to them to galvanize and push them into a new frontier, or they can reap the reward of possibly selling him at some point.”
However, Dike could definitely within reach for Everton.
It remains to be seen what approach Carlo Ancelotti and Marcel Brands will take in the summer transfer window but we would not object to the club signing an exciting young striker like Dike.
He’s been in impressive form since joining Barnsley on loan in February and his performances in March have seen him nominated for the Championship fans’ player of the month award.
Could we see Dike serving a back-up role behind Dominic Calvert-Lewin next season? Let’s wait and see but we’re a bit excited by this one, it sounds as though Brands could be unearthing a real top talent.
In other Everton news, the Blues are scouting another striker who’s been in excellent form this season.
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