'I've never seen a goal like it' - Valerien Ismael hails Daryl Dike strike as Barnsley move into play-off places

A second-half Daryl Dike rocket against Birmingham at Oakwell helped the Reds to their seventh successive win and it took Ismael’s men into the play-off positions.

A scrappy encounter was settled brilliantly by Dike after a firts half that brought about few opportunities on goal.

Cauley Woodrow had the Tykes’ first effort of the afternoon. Firing low past the post, the forward failed to find the target with a quarter of an hour gone.

Dike broke the deadlock in the 49th minute. Latching onto Carlton Morris’ pass down the right flank, the American fired a thunderbolt past a helpless Neil Etheridge from 22 yards.

Ismael said: “In my 28 or 29 years in football, I have never seen a strike like that before. It was something unbelievable.

“Congratulations to Dike and the guys for a great win.

“It was all about defending long balls and second balls. You have to stay strong and you have to deal with the way they play.

“In the second half we made changes and put pressure on the opponent.

“We’ve kept a clean sheet and we are in a brilliant position at the moment.

“The transfer window was important for us and now we are getting the reward.

“It’s important to make the right decisions in transfer periods and I am delighted that we made some great choices.

“This is what you can achieve when you believe. Everyone has the same vision, and everyone is hungry.”