Fulham

With one year left on his current Fulham contract, Clint Dempsey is about to make the biggest decision of his career. The 29-year-old American has been at Craven Cottage for nearly five-and-half seasons, and in that time he has become an indispensable part of the squad. 

Dempsey has stated he wants to play Champions League football, and his chances may be running low as he gets closer to 30. However, at the same time he may not get the same playing opportunities he has been afforded with Fulham.

This leaves the Texan with a problem most American soccer players never face. Does he leave to pursue a dream or does he stay and become a club icon. 

If Dempsey chooses to leave there are no guarantees he will become first choice for his new club. It seems too many American soccer fans believe Dempsey could walk into most teams. Even teams that are at the top of their respective leagues. 

Let's not forget Landon Donovan, considered by many to be the best American outfield player, couldn't get a game for two of the biggest teams in Germany—Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich—over the course of three stints. 

Donovan's time at Bayern was so poor, Hermann Gerland—Bayern reserve team manager—said Donovan wasn't even good enough to play for the reserves. 

Dempsey is currently negotiating a new three-year contract with Fulham. However, there are teams interested in his services. 

Dempsey is having the best year of his career leading the club with 12 goals, but his options may be limited to horizontal moves, rather than vertical.

As stated before, there are numerous US soccer fans that expect Dempsey to sign for a club of Arsenal or Chelsea's stature. Perhaps this is based on the belief that Dempsey is the best US outfield player, therefore, he should be playing for one of the best teams in Europe.

Dempsey has recently turned 29, and it must be taken into consideration that despite his excellent form, many clubs will not sign the American if he has little or no resale value—especially in the current economic climate. 

He has been valued at around $15 million by Transfermarkt, which seems outrageous and well off the mark. The price will go down considerably if Dempsey fails to sign a new deal going into the last year on his current contract. 

Though he has been linked to Arsenal, manager Arsene Wenger has a rule against signing players near or over 30—he has relaxed this rule in recent times, however—and clubs like Manchester United seem to have their fair share of midfielders capable of doing everything Dempsey can.

This makes the American’s options at the top of the Premier League limited. Chelsea has their own problems, and his talents would be wasted at Stamford Bridge. 

Tottenham, who is rapidly falling out of Champions League contention, is another possible destination. But they seem to have their sites set on Eden Hazard amongst others. 

If Dempsey wants Champions League football, it may likely come from a move outside of England. Germany’s Schalke or France’s Lille are clubs that Dempsey’s style would combine well with. 

Lille may lose Hazard this summer, and Dempsey’s ability to play as a midfielder or striker would compensate for their loss. Meanwhile, Schalke is one of the most exciting teams in Germany and is already home to another US international, Jermaine Jones.

Since last summer’s takeover of AS Roma by American businessman Thomas R. DiBenedetto, many have speculated Dempsey would move to the Italian club. Those same speculators also reported Michael Bradley and Landon Donovan would sign for the Romans as well—which they didn't. 

Dempsey moving to Roma, however, seems far-fetched as Dempsey's style does not fit into the Roma project, and manager Luis Enrique’s attempts to install a Barcelona-lite 4-3-3.

At the moment it doesn’t appear the possible Champions League qualifiers in Spain or Italy are interested in the American, nor have the money to sign him. However, clubs in both countries were made aware of Dempsey's abilities in February when he scored the USA's lone goal in their win over Italy. 

The American’s options seem more limited than most fans want to believe. Perhaps the best thing to do is to stay at Fulham, and continue his quest to be the best American soccer player of all time.

With a little luck, one day Clint Dempsey may have his statue next to Michael Jackson’s, outside Craven Cottage. 

There’s not much we don’t know about Clint Dempsey, save for the usual personal details that even the most visible athletes keep to themselves, because Clint Dempsey’s story is worth knowing.

Born and raised in Nacogdoches, Texas, Clint honed his skills as player both in the typical American youth soccer environment and against men much older than him from his town’s Latino communities. The former meant long drives from the family home to the better coaching of Dallas. The latter imbued young Clint with a bit of flair not typical in players groomed in America.

His family sacrificed to give Clint a chance at big time soccer while at the same time supporting his sister’s burgeoning tennis career; after her tragic death from a brain aneurysm at age 16, Clint’s soccer became a family focal point.

The emotional burden he carries from losing a loved one still pushes him, as evidenced by his point-to-the-sky goal celebration. Perhaps it’s macabre, but one can’t help but wonder if Clint Dempsey would be America’s best soccer player, or a professional soccer player at all, if his sister hadn’t passed away.

It’s strange to think, in this era of MLS academy growth and discussions about the value of college soccer, that Dempsey probably wouldn’t be the player he is today without his Furman University experience. From club and high school soccer in Texas, Clint went to a small school in South Carolina, mostly because there was no other option.

American players went to college where they could both get an education and play while hoping to catch Major League Soccer’s eye, because that was the system in place. A professional career was never a given.

While the rest of the world plucked gaggles of preteens and stuck them into academies on the off chance one or two might turn into a star, America made do with the same system that feeds the NFL and NBA.

When defenders of the college game need an example to point to as to why intercollegiate soccer still has merit as a molder of talent, Clint is the first name that comes to mind. Dempsey played college soccer and now he’s a top scorer in one of the best leagues in the world; surely that means college soccer is a fine place for players to grow. It’s a generalization based on one case.

The sense though, is that Dempsey is unique, especially in American circles. Dempsey has an ineffable something about him. He’s not constrained by bland American soccer programming. He’ll try anything, just because he can, just to see if it will work.

Dempsey was clearly always good enough to to be a professional while at Furman, so there wasn’t much question that he would be drafted into MLS.

In 2004, the New England Revolution selected Dempsey eighth overall, adding him to a team that included Steve Ralston and Taylor Twellman. The Revs subsequently had their greatest run to date, reaching a conference final and two MLS Cup Finals during Dempsey’s stay in New England.

Then the European suitor came calling. Fulham, the club with the American presence of Kasey Keller, Brian McBride, and Carlos Bocanegra, wanted to purchase Dempsey for a then-MLS record $4 million. By that point, Dempsey was already a rising USMNT star; just months before making the switch to England, Dempsey went to Germany with the United States for the 2006 World Cup.

He was the only American to score in the tournament.

Dempsey’s move to Europe was huge, both for his continued improvement and for the reputation of American soccer.

As the most accomplished American player in Europe from an individual standpoint, Dempsey is the subject of much debate within the American soccer community. What makes Deuce, Deuce? What combination of factors conspired to turn an East Texas kid into the foremost American player in Europe? More than that, what accounts for Dempsey’s rise to Premier League scoring machine, an accomplishment that now has observers wondering if he’s due to move on from the cozy confines of Craven Cottage and tackle the brighter lights of the Champions League?

Dempsey doesn’t lack for confidence, and he possesses a swagger that comes from being supremely confident in his abilities. But confidence means nothing without the work ethic and natural talent to back it up; plenty of American have been tapped for stardom only to find they didn’t have what it takes or the drive to improve.

Dempsey is not the most naturally gifted player. He’s not fast by most standards, his shot isn’t particularly noteworthy, and his athletic abilities—while certainly good enough for professional soccer—aren’t spectacular. In that way, Dempsey proves in an American body what we already knew to be true from countless great players through the ages.

It doesn’t take supreme visible gifts to be good. It’s something else, something maybe innate but possibly learned, that lifts players to great heights.

A review of Dempsey’s season goal totals since his move to Fulham (one, six, eight, 19, 13, 18 and counting) reveals that Clint’s development has never stopped. Despite having to continually audition for a cavalcade of managers during his time in London, Dempsey has improved year over year.

His 2011-2012 season might be his ceiling, wherever his goal total ends up, but it might very well be the just the next year on which he improves the following campaign. It’s that success, the sharp upward trend in his scoring numbers, that leads to those pertinent questions on whether Fulham is too small for his talents.

Logic dictates, rather emphatically, that Dempsey could be even better surrounded by a better team.

For all of Fulham’s success in the last few years—success not possible without Dempsey’s contributions, of course—the club is still limited. But Dempsey is the brightest light, so while it might be wrong to assume that he’d be as good or better in a different situation with more expensive talent around him, it’s natural to wonder. Both for Clint, and for his fans.

The common thread running through Dempsey’s rise to Premier League star and America’s best player is constant challenge he faced, the continual need to achieve a new goal. Dempsey has never rested on his laurels. At no point in his odyssey has he been perfectly comfortable, or chosen to accept his situation as the best he could do. 

Clint has never been fully satisfied.

It began with his time as a boy in Texas and the struggle of his family to get him to a quality club, a time mark by his sister’s death and the resulting emotional pain. Then, the move from college to the pros, and from MLS to Europe, so often the overriding goal for American players. Proving and reproving himself to manager after manager at Fulham, a visible chip developing on his shoulder while he fought against a perceived bias against him simply because he is American.

In every case, he met the challenge and succeeded.

Now, Dempsey find himself lauded in most circles, in the upper echelon of Premier League goalscorers, and a key part of the USMNT. There’s all the reason in the world to sit back and enjoy it, with the drive to improve and grow as a player naturally fading in response.

Dempsey won’t do that, of course, because it would fundamentally change what makes him the player he is. He’s already pushing for the next thing, admitting that Champions League football is on his mind.

We know a lot about Clint Dempsey, the cocky All-American baller from East Texas with the willingness to try almost anything and the skill to back it up.

We know his story, as the trailer park kid with a love of soccer who turned an atypical American soccer education—and sometimes tragic personal life—into a stellar career in the world’s biggest league.

And we know this: it’s still not enough, at least not for Clint.

Pavel Pogrebnyak proved himself as the perfect Premier League striker with his hat trick in Fulham's emphatic 5-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers at Craven Cottage.

The 28-year-old, signed on an initial loan deal from Bundesliga side Vfb Stuttgart, has scored in each of his three matches for Fulham so far, taking his tally to five goals in three games, having netted winners against Stoke City and Queens Park Rangers.

Of course, he's not the best striker in England's top-flight—that honour goes to Robin Van Persie—but since signing for the Cottagers, he has proven he's the perfect type of forward for the league.

When EPL sides such as Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea look to bolster their attacking options this summer, Russia international Pogrebnyak is exactly the kind of player they should seek to sign.

Just one look at the former Spartak Moscow and Zenit St. Petersburg striker will tell you he's made for the Premier League.

Tall and strong (188 cm. tall and weighing 91 kg), Pogrebnyak has the densely-packed biceps and pectorals (among other upper-body muscles groups used) to hold up play and shrug off defenders' challenges on the ball.

The Russian also has the strong quadriceps (and other leg muscles) to beat defenders for pace, race into penalty area and get on the end of chances.

His muscle mass makes him one of the heaviest players in the league—but given his pace, shot power, upper body strength and aerial ability, it also makes him one of the best athletes.

And aside from his athletic ability, Pogrebnyak is a player who makes his shots count.

In the Premier League more so than other European leagues, players tend to waste their efforts on goal, making sure they at least do something to work the goalkeeper than nothing at all.

For a lot of strikers, it means they usually end up without scoring, wasting the chances they had earlier in the game before finding out that no more opportunities will end up coming their way.

Pogrebnyak, on the other hand, waits for the right chance and seems to have an "If I don't score, so be it" attitude.

That's why he hasn't a big success at Stuttgart, but why he's doing so well at Fulham.

He waits for the right chance on goal, then takes it, which is why he's scored five goals from seven shots in his entire Fulham career—the model of efficiency.

There'll be games when the Cottagers don't make many chances and their midfield aren't on form, and that's when Pogrebnyak probably won't score.

But if the midfield is in working order, then it's almost guaranteed the Russian will get a sniff of goal, and thus be likely to find the back of the net, given that he has the finishing ability, which has seen him carve out a career at the highest level in Russia and Germany.

And the other main thing—besides the fact Pogrebnyak is enjoying himself in London and clearly getting the love he needs at Fulham—is seeing the Russian striker do well is his shooting style.

He's a player who likes to attack the ball, running in at pace to finish off a chance, more so than do all the work himself.

Pogrebnyak isn't a good decision-maker—which again led to his downfall in the Bundesliga—but he has a better striker's instinct than most in the game, so the quick, all-action attacking plays of the Premier League suit his style perfectly.

When you compare Pogrebnyak to Fernando Torres or Andy Carroll, the mind boggles as to why Liverpool and Chelsea overlooked a player like the Russian, who's doing a much better job, is more suited to the league and was available for a lot less money.

Martin Jol did incredibly well with this signing, and it's no wonder he's rather anxious to secure the striker on a permanent deal.

The right fit for Fulham and the English top-flight, Pavel Pogrebnyak is the model striker for the Premier League, and a player of his mould is exactly the type of signing clubs like Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Newcastle United should try to make.

Former Real Madrid star Mahamadou Diarra has signed for Fulham FC until the end of the season. The Mali International has been without a club since leaving Monaco last summer, and the 30-year-old midfielder will want to prove that he still has the legs to perform at the top level.

The move will only go through if he is granted a Visa, which is in motion at the moment and Fulham would be hopeful of having it sorted as soon as possible. The contract will also include the possibility to extend his stay at Craven Cottage until 2013.

Diarra is no stranger to winning league titles, collecting four French Ligue 1 winner's medals with Lyon, forming a formidable partnership with Michael Essien. The Malian then moved on to Spanish giants Real Madrid, and won La Liga twice in his stay at the Bernabau.

Diarra moved on from Madrid to Monaco, but when misfortune turned on the club leaving them relegated, he left and was subsequently linked with Doncaster Rovers and Wolves. These moves never materialised and he was left without a club.

A player once costing a rumoured £22 million coming in on a free transfer can only be a good thing for the London side. Martin Jol will surely be overjoyed at the capture of the veteran midfielder and will see him as someone to guide Fulham into the top half of the league.

Diarra will increase the strength in Fulham’s midfield, and his tactical awareness will be a great asset to the west London club as they look to build on some recent good results.

Clint Dempsey became the first American to record a hat trick in the English Premier League after his performance against Newcastle on Saturday, according to Yahoo! Sports.

Fulham was down at the half, but Dempsey prompted the comeback with three second-half goals to finish the day.

The comeback began with Dempsey scoring in the 59^th minute to give Fulham the lead. He scored six minutes later to increase the lead to two goals. Finally, Dempsey finished the day in the 89^th minute to record the first ever hat trick for an American in the Premier League.

He has a career-best 15 goals this campaign.

What an achievement this is for Dempsey. He has definitely been formidable in a great league for years now but his performance on Saturday pushed him to another level. Not only did he score a hat trick after being down at the half, but he did it against the sixth best team in the EPL.

Fulham currently sits with 26 points, eight points from relegation. Prior to their game on Saturday, Fulham were just five points from the bottom three. This was a big victory.

American soccer players have received plenty of criticism throughout the years but they have shined in recent weeks. Tim Howard continues to do well as a goalkeeper and Dempsey continues to prove he can play with the best.

For years now fans of United States soccer have claimed Landon Donovan as America’s best player, aside from Howard. I think that it is easily Dempsey given what he has done in one of the best leagues in the world.

He proved it again on Saturday.

Fulham claims to be the oldest club in London.

On Sunday, they fielded one of the oldest teams in the history of the Premier League.

The average age of the players in their starting line-up to play Blackburn Rovers was a little over 30. They gave the Blackburn team an average of four years per player.

 Just three of Fulham’s team members were below 30 years of age.

Compare that with their opponents, and the reverse is true. Just three of the Blackburn Rovers  team were over 30.

Successful sides manage to blend a mixture of youth and experience, but Fulham boss Martin Jol may need to re-balance his team, especially in view of the way they have faded in the later stages of games this season.

The 1-1 draw against Blackburn was a case in point. They just failed to show enough zip and sparkle to make the most of their possession.

The poor second-half performance at Wolves, ending in a 2-0 defeat, was another.

Lack of youth is a particular problem for Fulham, in view of the number of competitive matches they have played so far this season. Twice as many as some of their opponents.

The Europa League started on the last day of June for the Cottagers. Not much of a summer’s break for 34-year-old captain Danny Murphy and his veteran colleagues.

The Blackburn fixture was Fulham’s 12th of the season. It was Blackburn's fifth.

In between weekend Premier League games, Fulham has to play Dutch side Twente in the Europa League this week, followed by a Carling Cup fixture against Chelsea the following week.

The international break should have given some club players a bit of a rest in September. Not so for Fulham. They have six competitive fixtures to fulfil this month.

Martin Jol will be relieved that the Carling Cup game against Chelsea must be decided on the night.  The very thought of a replay might be too much for some of his senior players. 

Clint Dempsey is one of the top American players currently plying his trade overseas. And some fans of the U.S. men’s national team might be stoked at the unsubstantiated Goal.com rumors surfacing Tuesday that mighty Arsenal has expressed interest in adding the 28-year-old Texas native prior to the close of the transfer window on Wednesday.

Sure, it’d be cool to see “our guy” lining up at the Emirates in the vaunted red and white, competing day in and day out against the best players in the world. But from the perspective of hoping that the gritty attacking midfielder continues to develop, I hope this rumor is precisely that: a rumor.

To provide some background:

“A source close to the player told Goal.com that Arsenal will acquire Dempsey within the next 48 hours as long as Fulham does not set the price too high.

“'The deal seems like a very real possibility, but will come down to how quickly the two sides can agree on the selling price,’ the source said.

“Fulham does not want to sell the club's key attacker but privately accepts that it will be unable to fend off Arsenal if the north Londoners match the value of $16.3 million for the American, who is highly regarded at Craven Cottage and has two years remaining on his contract.”

OK, so it’s still far from a done deal.

And here’s hoping it stays that way.

Why?

First off, Dempsey has been a fantastic fit at Fulham. In parts of his six seasons at Craven Cottage, Dempsey has made 183 appearances, scoring a very solid 40 goals.

But more than that, he’s had a regular place in the lineup with the Cottagers, something that certainly would not be guaranteed with the Gunners. Sure, he’d have hours of practice time with the Robin Van Persies, Theo Walcotts and Bacary Sagnas of the world, but how much would that mean if he rarely sees the pitch in a meaningful match?

Presumably Arsene Wenger and company see enough value in the American as a player to consider the enormous transfer fee Fulham would demand.

But is the cache of a move to one of the world’s largest, most renowned clubs worth the decrease in playing time?

I would say no. Remaining at Fulham, where he’s a bigger fish in a smaller pond, is more likely to aid Dempsey’s skills, ability and fitness in the long run, resulting in more of a payoff for him in the red, white and blue of the United States.

Yes, U.S. soccer fans. It’s fun to hear one of “your guys” bandied about in a possible transfer to Arsenal. But understand that for the betterment of Dempsey’s game as a whole, it’s best that he stays far away from the Emirates.