Daryl Dike says there’s been a really positive atmosphere in the first-team group during the first week of pre-season, with the American insisting players are “buzzing to get back to it”.
The majority of the senior squad returned to base in the middle of last week, where they were greeted by new head coach Ryan Mason and his coaching staff.
Daryl and his team-mates have been hard at work in the gym and out on the training pitches, taking on a number of physically-demanding drills with and without the ball in preparation for the start of the Sky Bet Championship term on Saturday, August 9.
Dike, who was heavily involved towards the end of the 2024/25 campaign after recovering from injury, revealed he’s “really happy” with both his own fitness levels and the comradery that’s building within the environment.
The striker said: “As a player we obviously keep training when we’re away for the summer, but when you’re back out here and you’re running, it doesn’t really compare. You can definitely feel the time off.
“The first week back has been really good. It’s been good, first and foremost, to be back around the training ground and to see a lot of the guys we haven’t seen in a long time.
“Then of course we have a new coaching staff, so we’ve been getting to know them and their tactics. We’ve also been getting involved in lots of sessions too so it’s been nice.
“I’m happy with where I’m at and how I ended last term. I’m happy I could show myself and show everyone I can still do these kinds of things.
“I’m really happy to have had a whole summer off and to be going into a whole pre-season to fully regenerate myself, I guess. I want to keep the momentum going into the new season.
“I’d say Jayson Molumby has been the most impressive in all the drills, but I don’t know if we should put an asterisk on his running session considering how destroyed he was after it. I’d still say Jayson gets the trophy, though.
“The atmosphere has been good – everyone is obviously buzzing to get back to it. I think, as a footballer, of course pre-season is hard work, but we all love what we do. We love being out here, we love training and we love working hard.
“You can see that both out on the pitch and in the gym. Everyone is working really hard and with the new gaffer coming in, everyone is making sure they’re on it. Everyone has been really positive.”
When speaking to WBA TV, Daryl was also quick to praise his new boss.
Dike believes it’s clear from the opening week of pre-season Mason is a “good leader” and “very precise”.
He added: “Ryan Mason has been great, honestly. I know coming into a new environment can be very difficult, but he’s been great.
“He’s obviously a good leader and a good person. You can tell automatically that he expects us to work hard in every single session. That’s one of his things, pushing players to develop positive and good habits.
“Tactically, he’s obviously a very good guy. You can see that he always likes to be involved whether it’s meetings or during a session. No matter what, he’s very precise.
“I think having a gaffer like that is very, very important for us.”
