West Brom striker Daryl Dike likes the number eight.
That's the number of senior caps he has for the USA... and it's also the amount of months he's been accidentally washing clothes with dishwasher tablets for. The 22-year-old made the remarkable confession in a TikTok video, leaving fans perplexed by his actions.
"Alright so funny story time," explained Dike. "And before I continue - yes, I know I'm an idiot. I'm an idiot - I fully understand that. I will hold my hand up. For the longest time, I have kind of thought that my washing machine was just crap - it's just very bad.
"But anyway, I came into this apartment and bought one of those huge bags of laundry detergent to wash all my clothes. Recently it ran out, so I went to the store because I was like, 'oh, okay I got to go buy some more'.
"I'm looking at the [old] bag and I can't find the bag anywhere in the store. I'm sitting there like, 'why can't I find it? Why can't I find it?' So I come back home to my apartment and I look down at the bag I have... this is what I've been using!
"I have been washing my clothes with dishwasher soap since I've been here! I have lived in England for eight months! I'm an idiot! How do I even do that?"
What do you make of Daryl Dike's blunder? Let us know in the comments below!
Only you can answer that question, Daryl.
Although Dike doesn't know the difference between dishwasher and washing machine tablets, he does know where the target is. He scored 10 goals in 18 MLS appearances for Orlando City and was also prolific during a loan spell at Barnsley, finding the net nine times in 19 Championship games in the second half of the 2020/21 campaign.
Dike joined West Brom on a permanent deal in January but has struggled to make an impact at the Hawthorns due to a hamstring complaint. He's played just three games so far for the Baggies and will be hoping to break into Steve Bruce's side soon.
And Dike isn't an idiot, as he claims. He graduated with a first-class honours degree in finance from the Southern New Hampshire University earlier this summer. Speaking to The Sun, he said: "Before I got drafted to Orlando City, I was in the University of Virginia and the MLS has a programme for players who leave school early to help fund college.
"So I told my parents I’d continue my education while I was playing. Every day I was doing my classes online and this summer I completed it. The hardest part was keeping on top of it as I had to do it in my own time. Football has also been huge for me but the importance of education has always been ingrained into me and my siblings."
On his football ambitions, he added: "As I kid I had two dreams - to play in the Premier League and compete in the World Cup. Hopefully I’ll be doing one this year and then next year the other."
