Barnsley FC postponement has benefited Daryl Dike says Valerien Ismael

The USA international - who arrived in the UK last Wednesday - is available for Thursday’s glamour FA Cup date with Chelsea at Oakwell, having afforded valuable time on the training ground in preparation for his first-team introduction for the club.

It came after Saturday's scheduled home game with Derby was called off due to a waterlogged pitch, with a rain deluge hitting the Barnsley area throughout Saturday.

Ismael, who confirmed that Romal Palmer and Toby Sibbick are back in training - with Aapo Halme due to return on Friday - said: “He (Dike) will bring something new and is what we wanted and have now got.

“The postponement may be a good thing as the positive aspect from that is that he has recovered a lot from the travel from Orlando to Barnsley with the jetlag because the first few days was a difficult time.

“But now it is fine and he has adapted. He is more ready for (the last) two days and it is a good thing for us."

Meanwhile, Ismael says that Patrick Schmidt’s loan move to FC Reid for the rest of the season makes sense for all parties - and his performances will be monitored in the weeks ahead.

He said: “I think it makes sense for everyone; for him, for the club, for the new club.

“They get a player who is motivated and one who has a great mentality. He has to play now and it is a good situation for him to get new confidence and be more involved in the game and come back strong.”

On the future of Schmidt, whose Reds deal runs until the summer of 2023, with a further year’s option in the club’s favour, Ismael added: “We will see what happens in the future. He needs to play and score to get his confidence and we will see.

“For sure, we will follow his development in the next weeks.”