West Ham United will need to contain an in-form Lyndon Dykes when they travel to face Millwall on Saturday.
The 30-year-old has emerged as Alex Neil’s biggest goalscoring threat during the opening weeks of the Championship campaign and heads into the derby on his strongest run of form this season.
Dykes scored again in Tuesday’s 2-2 draw against Middlesbrough, continuing a sequence which has seen him find the net in three consecutive league appearances.
That takes him to four Championship goals from seven outings and makes him Millwall’s leading scorer heading into the meeting with West Ham.
Lyndon Dykes hits form before West Ham derby
Dykes needed time to get going following his summer move to Millwall.
His first league goals arrived against Bolton Wanderers on 5 September when the Scotland international scored twice during a 4-0 victory at The Den.
He followed that by finding the net against Blackburn Rovers before adding another against Middlesbrough on Tuesday.
Dykes has therefore scored four goals across his last three Championship appearances.
That represents a significant increase from last season, when he scored five times across 41 Championship appearances for Birmingham City and Charlton Athletic.
West Ham cannot afford to allow that momentum to continue.
The striker’s physical presence provides Millwall with a direct outlet, particularly when Neil’s side are forced to defend deeper and attack quickly.
That approach was evident against Middlesbrough, where Millwall surrendered the vast majority of possession but still carried a threat.
Read West Ham has already examined the tactical approach Millwall used during their draw at Middlesbrough.
West Ham must deal with Millwall attacking threat
Dykes is not Millwall’s only threat.
Taïryk Arconte scored the opening goal at the Riverside and has three Championship goals this season, including two during the 3-0 victory against Norwich City.
Camiel Neghli has also contributed one goal and two assists across seven league appearances.
But Dykes enters Saturday’s derby with the strongest individual scoring form.
His goal against Middlesbrough came after 36 minutes, reacting inside the penalty area after Caleb Taylor kept a corner alive as Millwall established a 2-0 first-half lead.
That moment also highlights another area West Ham will need to defend carefully.
Millwall possess significant size and physicality from dead-ball situations, with Dykes, Jake Cooper and Taylor all capable of creating problems inside the penalty area.
Nuno Espírito Santo’s side cannot simply dominate possession and expect that to decide the contest.
Middlesbrough had around 80 per cent of the ball on Tuesday but still found themselves two goals behind at half-time.
Dykes gives Nuno clear defensive problem
West Ham should enter the derby with fresher legs after Nuno rotated several players during the Carabao Cup defeat against Fulham.
Millwall, meanwhile, are dealing with injuries and a demanding run of fixtures.
Alex Neil has already admitted some of his players are “running on empty” before facing West Ham.
That does not make Dykes any less dangerous.
A striker who has scored in three successive league matches will arrive at The Den with confidence, particularly in a derby where chances may be limited.
Stopping Millwall’s leading scorer could therefore be one of West Ham’s most important tasks on Saturday.
