Tag: Daryl Dike

Daryl Dike’s World Cup hopes are all but over after latest injury setback

A thigh muscle tear will sideline Dike “at least a couple months”

Daryl Dike is set to miss at least two months with a thigh muscle tear, which appears likely to spell the end of his World Cup hopes.

The West Brom striker suffered the injury in training last week, with his manager Steve Bruce saying earlier this week that the 22-year-old was “devastated” after his latest setback.

On Thursday, Bruce confirmed at a press conference that the U.S. national team forward is now set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

Bruce said: “The scan results have confirmed our fears that he’s got a tear to his thigh muscle. Last time it was his hamstring. We’re devastated for him and for the whole lot of us. I don’t want to put a timescale on it, because that’d be unfair.

“It’s substantial, it’ll be weeks, at least a couple of months. He’s got to stay mentally strong the kid, because he’s had an awful time and the way he’s worked and the way he got himself into the condition he’s in, it’s really disappointing for him and everybody.

“He’s kicked a ball. It’s so innocuous that it’s scary. He’s tried to score a goal. It might even have been just a tap in, last minute of training session. It’s frustrating for everybody.”

Dike’s World Cup dream fading

Dike made just two appearances for West Brom after joining from Orlando City in January, suffering two separate injury setbacks.

The forward was hoping to get in the mix for a World Cup spot by staying healthy and finding goalscoring form in the new season, but instead played just one game before his latest injury.

Dike has not played for the USMNT since July 2021. An optimistic timetable for this latest injury would see Dike back in mid-October, meaning he would have only a couple weeks to regain his fitness and form in time to impress U.S. head coach Gregg Berhalter.

For a player who at that point wouldn’t have been in the USMNT picture for well over a year, and wouldn’t have had an injury-free run for nearly a year, it would be a herculean task.

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USMNT striker stock watch: Dike’s back, Ebobisse’s heating up

Who will start at No. 9 for the USMNT at the World Cup? Right now, Jesús Ferreira leads the striker stock watch power rankings.

If everyone’s healthy, U.S. men’s national team coach Gregg Berhalter probably has a pretty good idea of his preferred starters for the World Cup this fall – at most positions, anyway.

Most spots in the XI have obvious first-choice options, but striker remains a big question mark for the USMNT, at least in the eyes of fans and pundits.

The top candidates for the No. 9 role can make Berhalter’s job easier by performing for their club teams and creating some separation in the competition leading up to November.

We’re going to be periodically checking in on the top striker candidates leading up to the World Cup with our new striker stock watch series. With MLS teams hitting midseason and European clubs beginning preseason, now’s a good time to start.

Let’s get to the list!

USMNT won’t play in Olympics, but they could still feature a strong U-23 squad this summer

Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie and Sergiño Dest headline the USMNT’s strong core of U-23 players.

After losing 2-1 to Honduras on Sunday, U.S. Soccer’s under-23 men’s team failed to qualify for the Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan (the women’s team qualified last year).

Unlike the women’s game, the men’s Olympic tournament is an under-23 competition (technically under-24 this time after the Olympics were postponed one year due COVID-19). Because the men’s competition is considered a youth tournament, FIFA does not require clubs to release their players for international duty (for qualifying or the tournament).

For that reason, many of the best U-23 players in the world don’t participate in the Olympics and many countries don’t take soccer seriously at the tournament. It’s not anything close to the World Cup.

Americans love the Olympics, though, and we gather together every four years to watch sports we otherwise don’t care about. Evan casual American sports fans would have tuned in if the USA’s U-23 soccer team reached the semifinal or final at the Olympics — it’s another chance to win gold!

The USMNT won’t get a chance to grow its popularity during the Olympics this summer after they failed to qualify, but they could still build a strong U-23 roster for the Concacaf Nations League in June or the Gold Cup in July.

U.S. Soccer won’t be limited to 18-player rosters this summer, but I capped it at that just to demonstrate the Olympic-eligible core the USMNT has (teams can also bring three overage players to the Olympics). This squad won’t play in Tokyo, but they represent a promising future for the national team.