I can’t be the only one surprised that Clint Dempsey has spent his entire Premier League career playing for Fulham. This is meant as no slight against the Cottagers (who currently have the makings of an excellent squad) but I see Dempsey as the kind of player who could cut it at a team playing Champions League football and vying for silverware. After the season he’s had this year there’s every chance that ‘bigger’ clubs will come in for him in the summer and now that he’s 29-years-old he has a decision to make: where does he spend the last years of his career?
Dempsey’s Fulham contract will expire in summer 2013 and Fulham are believed to be in negotiations for new terms. The fear is that he won’t sign and that will put the Cottagers in an awkward position: do they sell him this summer and make some money or keep him for another year and lose him on a free?
Whilst Dempsey has been non-committal in terms of his future, his performances on the football pitch show that he’s fully focused on Fulham at the moment. 15 Premier League goals (21 goals in total this season) in 32 appearances show that he’s no slouch. Last season he scored 12 goals in 37 appearances so the signs are there that he’s hitting a late career peak.
But he offers more than just goals. He’s got bundles of experience – 179 appearances for Fulham and 83 appearances for the US. He’s strong in the air, quick along the ground and is capable of shouldering the creative burden in the midfield. All in all, he’s a top all-round midfielder.
So couldn’t Dempsey do a job at a club like Manchester United who look a little short in midfield? Some fans are a little snobbish when it comes to bringing in players who have stood out in ‘smaller clubs’, but I can’t help but feel that Dempsey would excel if given an opportunity to make the step up. If there’s any real concern just look at the way Antonio Valencia developed after moving to United from Wigan.
Given Dempsey’s record and his performances in the Premier League this season isn’t there evidence that he can do the same? Throughout United’s history the club has dominated by scooping up the best talents from teams below them. There’s no use whining about how they’re not in a top team, if they’re a good, effective player then they can do a job.
With Scholes’ absence and uncertainty surrounding Anderson’s future Clint Dempsey could be the perfect solution to United’s woes. So does Sir Alex Ferguson really need to look abroad for the answer?
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