Clint Dempsey returns to Fulham but is he still up to it?

Clint Dempsey

Fulham have announced the loan signing of Clint Dempsey from Seattle Sounders upon the re-opening of the transfer window, taking advantage of the close season in the MLS to bring one of their heroes back to Craven Cottage.

Dempsey enjoyed the finest seasons of his career at Fulham, becoming a fan favourite in West London for his displays in the famous white shirt before moving on to a less successful season at Tottenham Hotspur.

In the summer, he headed back to the States as Andre Villas-Boas overhauled the Spurs squad, with Dempsey having failed to maintain his Fulham form at the Champions League-chasing club, often feeling the ire of Spurs fans for a series of insipid performances.

However, Dempsey did manage to score seven goals for Spurs last season, while he also managed to claim four assists from the 33 chances he created for his team-mates in 29 appearances.

A shot accuracy of 55% was one of the best in the Spurs squad as well, with only Gareth Bale and Emmanuel Adebayor managing better of Spurs’ attacking options, converting 14.3% of his chances.

The Fulham faithful will hope to see more of the man who scored 50 goals for the club in his first spell, when he displayed far more dynamism than he mustered at White Hart Lane.

Dempsey managed to beat his man on just eight occasions last season, with a take-on success rate of just 29%, while he also managed to win only 36% of his headers as well.

‘Deuce’ struggled to beat his man, winning just eight take ons

Cottagers fans will be hoping that Dempsey can find his feet quickly again back at the club where he made his name in England and fire them out of the trouble they have found themselves in in the first half of the season.

With just two months to cement his hero status once more at Craven Cottage, Dempsey will hope his partnership with Dimitar Berbatov proves more fruitful than anything he managed with Adebayor or Jermain Defoe, if he is to play a key role in alleviating Fulham’s woes and keep them in the Premier League.