Daryl Dike will bring more than goals to West Brom frontline

But boss Valerien Ismael believes Daryl Dike won’t just add some much needed firepower to his front line – he will also bring the best out of the Baggies’ other forwards.

The central striking position has been a problem for Albion all season with Kenneth Zohore out of favour and Jordan Hugill having managed just one goal since arriving on loan from Norwich.

Callum Robinson and Matt Phillips have each had spells in the role, however both players are at their best when deployed out wide.

Now, though, Ismael has the central striker he craves after bringing in Dike from Orlando City on the first day of the January transfer window.

And the boss believes the American will help knit his front three together while also creating space for Albion’s other attacking players.

“I think he is another type of player, he will give us a different situation,” Ismael said when asked if Dike’s arrival will ease the pressure on his other forwards.

“I think that against Cardiff, for example, it would have been a perfect game for him.

“We had a lot of situations where we got our forward players in one-on-one situations but we didn’t create good chances.

“This is exactly what we need for our page – a powerful centre-forward that the opponents’ centre-backs are more worried about

“It will be the case with Dike because the attention will be more on Dike and that will give more freedom to our wide players.”

Dike, who hasn’t played for four weeks due to the MLS season finishing at the end of November, thrived under Ismael while the duo were at Barnsley last season.

Asked what he expects from the striker now he is at Albion, the boss said: “The expectation is that he scores goals.

“He just needs to do his job.

“The good thing is he knows the philosophy, and our expectation of him, so it will be easier and quicker for him.

“We have a lot of clips of him from last season, so we can show him them so he can remember all the situations.

“For now it’s more the physical stuff. After four weeks off you need to rebuild the physicality to have the best of Dike.

“It’s now our job to prepare Dike for the game at QPR.”

Elsewhere, former Albion midfielder Derek McInnes has been confirmed as the new Kilmarnock manager.

The 50-year-old is known to want to manage the Baggies one day and was linked with a return to the club over the summer before Ismael’s appointment.

McInnes has been out of work since last March when Aberdeen sacked him despite bringing eight years of success to Pittodrie.

Now he has accepted the challenge of guiding Kilmarnock out of the Scottish Championship and into the Premiership.

McInnes has won promotion from the division before – with St Johnstone in 2009.