Daryl Dike says “words can’t describe how good a feeling it is” to score once again for West Bromwich Albion.
The towering striker has suffered serious injuries during his time at the club, resulting in long spells out of the team.
He was handed his first league start in 750 days on Saturday as the Baggies beat Luton Town 5-3 on the final day of the season, with Dike heading home the second goal to make it 2-1.
It was a moment celebrated passionately by not only Daryl, but also his team-mates and Albion supporters.
The forward labelled the day as one he was “dreaming of” when in the middle of those challenging moments.
He said: “Every single day since the injury and every single day in training, these are the days you dream of. You draw it up in your head and you’re kind of waiting for it.
“When it all comes through, words can’t even describe how good a feeling it is.
“Everyone has been super supportive and they’ve seen how much it meant to me. They’ve also seen how hard I’ve worked for it. Everyone was buzzing for me, which was so nice.
“Any time one of our full-backs or wingers gets the ball out wide, I’ll always try and make sure I’m available in the box. When you have a ball like that and it kind of drops on your head, I saw it and I was like well this it, now’s the chance.
“To be honest, I was a little surprised to find out I was starting. We had a pre-match meeting and I looked at the board and I saw my name and it said that I was starting. I was like, oh. That was about an hour-and-a-half or two hours before the game.
“I was buzzing, obviously. I was actually nervous too, and I don’t really get nervous.
“I felt great physically. I kind of surprised myself. I thought I’d be a lot more tired, but, honestly, even in the 60th minute or so, I felt good. I’m happy about that.
“It’s a good way to cap the season off. I can show myself that I’m still capable of doing it and I can do it. There’s a long summer coming up now and I’m going to make sure I’m prepared for the new season.”
