This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict’ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more

Daryl Dike is a player that is starting to attract plenty of transfer interest ahead of the summer window because of the performances he has been showing for Barnsley in the Championship.

Dike only arrived at Oakwell in January on loan from Orlando City and has been one of the key reasons why the Tykes have managed to establish themselves in the race for the play-off places. The forward has managed to register seven goals in just 13 appearances in the Championship in what is his first spell in English football.

The 20-year-old is already starting to attract interest and it has been reported that the likes of Manchester United, Leeds United, Chelsea and Everton are keeping a watchful eye over his performances ahead of the summer. That means that the forward is going to face a potentially huge decision over his future.

Barnsley are thought to have an option available to them to sign the forward on a permanent basis in the summer for a fee of around £17 million. Although the Tykes might not be able to afford to take up such an option especially if they are not promoted to the Premier League.

The Tykes have been an excellent club for him to have moved to in January and he has been able to showcase his potential. However, it has been only been a relatively small period for teams to judge his qualities.

With that in mind, we discuss whether Dike is indeed the real deal or if it might be a little too early to judge him at this stage…

Alfie Burns

Dike has really impressed me since he’s arrived at Barnsley and when you’re performing at the top end of the Championship, links to the Premier League do naturally come around.

Personally, Man U is a step too far for him, but I could see Leeds being a reasonably good fit for his development.

Having said that, there are probably four or five other Premier League sides that would be able to offer Dike the game time he needs.

I don’t think that Dike will be short of offers come the summer anyway, he’s done really well at Barnsley and looks like a player destined for the Premier League.

Phil Spencer

There's no doubt that Daryl Dike is the real deal.

The striker has been a revelation since moving to Barnsley on loan in January having scored seven goals in 14 games and firing the club into the play-off mix.

He may only be 20 but he's already proving just how good he can be.

Dike may not get regular first-team football with Leeds United or Manchester United but if he continues to improve at this rate there's no doubt that he can be a top player in the Premier League before too long.

Ned Holmes

This is an interesting one.

There's no doubt that Daryl Dike is a wonderful talent and has all the characteristics to thrive in the top flight.

His combination of pace, power, finishing and very smart movement make him such a dangerous player but he is still very raw.

Dike's success shouldn't be downplayed but it's important to consider that this is a very small sample size.

He'll need a fair bit of coaching to reach the level it seems he may be able to and whoever makes a move for him will need to be patience but there's still plenty to be excited about.