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Clint Dempsey took part in the U.S. Men's national team practice sessions on Monday in preparation for the team's upcoming qualifiers against Jamaica, but it was the subject of his club status that drew the most attention on Monday.
Dempsey's last-minute transfer to Tottenham from Fulham ended a roller coaster ride of a last month, one that saw him ostracized from Fulham as he pushed hard for a transfer. Dempsey was portrayed as the bad guy for wanting to leave, but his push ultimately led to a dream move to North London.
Dempsey discussed the move on Monday, offering up some insight into the move and the bad taste that the ordeal left.
"I'm disappointed in the way I was portrayed, in the end, with Fulham," Dempsey told the Associated Press. "I always wanted to play at the highest level possible. That was never a secret. That's something I always said. It would be a dream of mine to play Champions League and you want to play on the best team possible to try to get there. That's definitely a team with a lot of quality in it, but now it's all about the team that I'm with."
What do you think of Dempsey's comments? Agree that he was treated unfairly? Like the idea of him playing for Tottenham? See Dempsey being ready for Friday's qualifier in Kingston?
Share your thoughts below.
a) And yet, transfers are only part of the equation-the wages they are paying Adebaydor I am willing to bet are more than what the lowest spending team spends on their entire squad.
b) doesn’t account for built-in advantages the club has, nor does it account for what the club has already spent money on (Defoe, Lloris, Adebayor, Bale, etc., aren’t exactly cheap).
c) Psychology effect-even if individual clubs may make a profit, the centralizing tendencies of players to play where winning is guaranteed (modric) or much easier (dempsey) negate the ability of small clubs to even the playing field by offering larger amounts of money in specific instances (see Aston villa, dempsey). This occurs because without a cap (and with Financial Fair play codifying status quo statuses) there is no reasonable hope for Dempsey to stay at Fulham and reach the top. In the NFL, even the NBA pre-Lebron, it is/was theoretically reasonable that any team could rise to the top and players were incentivized to stay loyal and bring winning, not join it.
For the record, I’m think FulhamDC is talking crazy.
In general I agree with what you are saying, but I think Jol until the very last minute, including his infamous attack on Clint before the Norwich match, was still hoping he could break down Clint and force him to sign the extension (and make no mistake, Jol tried very hard all summer long to break Clint). But as long as Clint held firm, I agree, Fulham was no doubt going to sell him during the transfer window for many millions rather than let him go next year for free–but they made sure he would leave with a tarnished reputation. That said, I have a feeling the Fulham fans at some point in the future will realize that Jol and Fulham management were the jerks in all this and will again hold Clint in the high esteem that he deserves.
As for Dembele, I agree that after he arrived at Tottenham they most likely asked his opinion of Clint and Dembele gave the big thumb‘s up. I like Dembele and can’t wait to see him and Clint partnering again.
Then why was he so keen on moving to Liverpool, a team which finished level with Fulham last year? (Just playing devil’s advocate.)
Unless I’m mistaken, Dembele’s contract also ended next summer, but Fulham had an option for another year.
Again, where was that said? Jol said he quit on the team. Jol said he refused to play. They publically trashed Clint and it cost them money in the end. Small clubs often make it a habit of selling players when they are in their late 20’s and have only a year left on their contracts. Especially when the manager has pledged himself to a “youth movement” but knows the only real money he will have to spend will come from moeny earned on sales. You practically said that yourself.
And the “past his prime” Sir Bobby Moore made more than 120 appearances for Fulham. I will be surprised if Berbatov makes that many. Alan Mullery was a pretty big pick up when he returned to the club durng that same period as Moore. All they did was lead Fulham to their only FA Cup Finals appearance. Maybe Berbatov can do that as well, but I’m skeptical to say the least.
I don’t think that word means what you think it means.
My “English advocacy bandwagon?” What does that even mean? This isn’t a club or country debate. My loyalty, as it were, is 100% with US Soccer. And when Dempsey plays for the national team, I’ll root for him as loudly as any of you. But when it comes to club soccer, I support Fulham, and Dempsey did not handle his departure from the club well. As long as he is playing in a league where his success is detrimental to the success of the club I support, I cannot root for him. Or, more exactly, I cannot support his team. An ideal situation for me would be Dempsey scoring a boatload of goals and Spurs finishing mid-table.
Geez, some of you guys are taking this so personally. it’s just sports. Lighten up!
That’s quite an assumption there, Old School.
Surely you’re kidding? Of course Dempsey insisted on moving – that’s why he’s no longer at the club. Small clubs don’t make it a habit of trying to offload their best players to larger clubs when they don’t want to leave. It’s not a good business model. Fulham knew it was get something for him now or nothing for him next summer – either way, Dempsey was gone.
I hadn’t considered it before, but now that I do I can’t think of a bigger signing than Berbatov. You can argue that he’s past it (we’ll see if he still has anything left this season), but can you name a more accomplished, higher-profile signing? There’s Bobby Moore, obviously, but he was past his prime and Fulham were a second division side. A case could certainly be made for Edwin van der Sar.
Both sides are pointless arguing because we don’t have all the facts and it’s in the past now- lets move on. I’ll still continue to support Deuce (the only real reason I watched Fulham play in the first place). Lets Go You Yanks!
Here’s my issue with the way Fulham handled this. They KNEW they were going to do their best to sell Dempsey before the end of the transfer window. If you believe the whole “he’s not for sale” line, ask yourself why Dempsey, their two-time player of the year, all time leading goal scorer in the Prem, and generally speaking fan favorite, did not appear in ANY of their preseason marketing materials. Including the promotion of their fancy new kit design, their website redesign, or any of their printed programs. If he “wasn’t for sale”, why would you leave one of your most marketable players out of all that?
It was pretty obvious they were entertaining bids for him. Why not just say so? Why all the nonsense? You see it with other clubs – think Luka Modric and Tottenham – where managers just say “he wants a transfer, his head’s not right, we’re waiting to see what happens.” Granted, I don’t know the details of the situation since Dempsey won’t talk about it, so I can’t say that he’s blameless. I just think Jol and Fulham could’ve shown a little more tact throughout the process.
Van Persie commanded a 24M pound transfer fee versus Deuce at 6M pounds..a 4x difference, and they are very close in age!
Is Deuce as good as RvP, no! But is RvP 4x the player…also absolutely no!
John Henry and the money men didn’t play money ball they smoked too much herb and fell asleep at the wheel…Rodgers got screwed by the management group.
Spurs are NOT in the CL.
He could’ve played his contract out and then sign with a team that actually qualified if they offered him I contract, which I highly doubt.
I may have to buy FIFA13 now just so i can play as Tottenham / Dempsey.
All Clint did was tell the truth. He just wanted to play for a team in the Champions League…
“Doing business” just as Fulham was. As you say, “Get over it.”
Only one of those statements was false. And I don’t blame them for the other one.
Checking the Spurs website, Clint will be wearing Number 2.
“Deuce!”
Show me. Show me exactly where Clint “insisted on moving”? Did he post something on his web page, like RVP did? Did he hand in a transfer request? What did HE say. Don’t show me what Martin Jol said he said, show me what Clint said beyond “I’d like to play Champions League football.”
Your taking the word of a manager who believes that a lazy Bulgarian is the “biggest signing in the history of the club”. Your a Fulham fan, do you really believe that?
I think the bigger issue for Fulham is that Dempsey was willing to play out his contract and was not going to re-sign with them. Dembele was under contract for a couple of more years.
Fulham had to get rid of Clint or his tranfer value would drop by Jan or be nothing next summer. Jol did not like the fact that Clint turned down an extension.
Interesting that Dembele talks about what a professional Clint is that he will bring the edge to the team that they need. Can’t see Tottenham signing him if Dembele had been in the locker room saying Dempsey was a bad apple.
I believe “fault” runs both ways. Including Dempsey. In the end, is it really any of our business? Who are we to speculate one way or the other? He’s inked to Tottenham and I’ll continue to root for him in both club and country, period!!
Shouldn’t really be a debate, in my eyes.
It’s more laughable if the people that are in the camp of “I won’t cheer for him other than in a Nats jersey” are the same people that have NEVER attended a single minute of a live match of their “club”.
I’ll never get that, no matter the reasoning.
Klinnsman played at Tottenham -> became superhero.
Dempsey is playing at Tottenham -> will become superhero!
ah, the old club or country debate
The Deuce doesn’t make mistakes. He makes US soccer fans’ dreams come true.
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Liverpool (my club) really whiffed on this one. We only have two senior strikers — Suarez and Borini. Clint was available for a pretty cheap price: 6 million for a guy who scored 23 goals last year. LFC need goals wherever we can get them, and we would have got them with Clint. Plus, because of his never-say-die nature, Anfield would have absolutely loved the guy. Loved him.
The failure to get him is a fairly big deal for Liverpool fans. Owner John Henry actually wrote an open letter to club supporters, posted on the team site, defending/apologizing for the club’s crummy transfer behavior. He indirectly crapped on Rodgers and Dempsey (and he’s wrong about that, Clint was available at a great price and would have left everything on the field with Pool), but the point is that this whole f*ckup is a big deal.
FF
Er, do you realize that Spurs turned a profit of 13-14 mil pounds in this transfer window? It’s not like they’re going out there and spending like drunken sailors.
Uh, they were top 4 last year…
I doubt that that’s accurate. Tottenham’s wage ceiling is around 80k, and Dempsey would not going to be at the max end of their wage scale.
There’s no such thing as ‘guaranteed parity’, the difference is the metric by which teams are successful is smart management, not high payrolls.
If Europe were to adapt parity-mechanisms for example, it wouldn’t include things like the draft, allocation order, etc. things which you presumably make owners feel complacent (though doesn’t the threat of relegation solve that?).
It would just be a salary cap. Well-run teams win. Those that don’t don’t. Simple as that.
No team has a guarantee to anything. They have a right to be successful though within a reasonable bound.
We love America and we love American players. We’re not buying your English advocacy bandwagon. We love Clint Dempsey and will support him fully. He’s one of us and represents America first and the club he plays for second, not matter which club it happens to be.
As a fan of a mediocre mls team i have mixed feelings about the effects of guarenteed “parity”, the caste system of most of europe isnt perfect either
While he wont be the central point of attack any more demps should see plenty of time with the loss of VdV, Modric and Parker (injury) there should be plenty of opennings in the CM/CF area..
Also Spurs did qualify for UCL! They just got booted by lucky Chelsea! I think after this transfer window they are built better for the future and a deep Europa League run. I think its an ideal place for him
Ah, who really cares. People acted in what they thought was their own best interest at the time. Sometimes that meant taking liberties with the truth. In the end, worst case, Dempsey missed playing in a couple Fulham games and some Fulham fans learned that Clint honestly had his own interest at heart more so than he did Fulham’s. Dempsey fans learned that clubs can be difficult negotiators that do not always play fair. In the ned it pretty much all worked out. Good luck to Clint and to Fulham (who may need the luck more than Dempsey will).
I don’t think Dembele engaged in some of the transfer politics Dempsey did. Also, I believe Dembele’s contract had a clause where if a club offered Fulham 15 million pounds for him, Fulham had to accept the transfer fee. With that said, I don’t blame Dempsey for saying he wanted out. Players do it all the time, and it was in Fulham’s best interest to sell Dempsey because he wasn’t going to sign a new contract with Fulham. Furthermore, I think Dempsey would have played if Fulham allowed him to.
I think Liverpool screwed up by announcing they signed Dempsey when the never bid.
I think Fulham screwed up by how the treated Dempsey during the whole situation.
I think Dempsey isn’t without blame, either. He was perhaps too aggressive in his desire to leave.
Clint (like RVP, Albert Pujols, et al) acted in his best self-interest. This is a given in modern professional sports.
He should have handed in a transfer request as soon as last season ended. That way there would have been an appropriate amount of time for Fullham and Dempsey to maximize the situation. In waiting till weeks before the season started to voice his desire to transfer, he put his employers in an uncomfortable situation.
And while Dempsey will see a tidy pay increase, he will unfortunately see a significant drop off in his playing time this year. Coupled with the fact that the Spurs will not qualify for a CL position this season, his decision seems puzzling.
If that’s sarcasm, there is a middle ground, I didn’t say anything about playoffs or EVERY team every year being able to win, but each team should theoretically be able to have upward movement (and downward movement) without significant changes in fiscal policy.
^^^I’m pretty sure some of ya’ll know what I was trying to say. Iphone is funny at times
Ok who cares about which side is was much more loyal, frankly I can care less about Fulham now since no Americans play there. The fact is Clint gave the Fulham fans and owners more than was expected from him. I don’t live in London nor do I care for what goes around there economically or fan base wise. I watch the EPL because of American players and good Futbol. I like most on this board are American fans before any EPL team. I personally are not a decedent or have ever lived in England, so I can switch teams along with my players and totally support that team whether is good or bad… shoot, I remember being a Reading and Hull fan, and I’ll do it again if one of our dudes end up there!… with all that said, “F” Fulham and their fans.
+1
I’m sorry, the guy is not a comic book hero, he’s a professional athlete doing business. Get over it.
+1 what if he even picked up a small injury in fulham training some time in August.. I bet he wouldnt transfer come back a play the remaining season with fulham and leave on a free, would that be better?
I know, right! Keep hearing that, hard to believe.. But i guess jamaica hasnt been in the past 2 hex’s and we drew in kingston back in ’01..before that; the dark ages of US Soccer doesnt surprise me.. Im pretty sure its not a 0-23-1 situation like Mexico its just a lack of oppurtunities
Well enjoy mls where 14 of the 19 clubs are still in the title run
+1 re: loyalty in club soccer.
There is no loyalty anywhere in professional club sports in this modern era. It is what it is. Sure, Fulham fans would have loved for him to stay and toil away the rest of his career mid-table at best for a club that cannot afford better. I am not sure why his transfer was such a public saga, other than he is American so the media took a special level of interest (on this side of the pond at least).
The fact of the mater is only a select few rich clubs have any shot at being the best clubs in the world’s best leagues. I can’t fault Clint for wanting to win more games and maybe a trophy during his career. That is every athlete’s dream. EPL is structured such that there is simply no way that that would ever happen at Fulham with or without Dempsey.
In the end everyone got what they wanted, its too bad it took so long and was so ugly but thats what it takes sometimes. I dont think either side did anything bad, except Liverpool, its all business.
Looking forward i think fulham looks okay with their rebuilding, certainly Jol’s squad now. And Spurs look great! They should have a 3-5 finish this year and its a perfect fit for Clint.
Fulham expected some big bids for Dempsey. They didn’t get them. In order to save face, they decided to hold Dempsey out from team functions (making them appear to have a strong position) and try to drive up his value by holding him on the line like a lure until the closing of the window.
What they were ashamed of, in this regard (I wouldn’t quite call it shame, but it’s the word you chose), is that their valuation of the player was way below the actual market value.
Why else does a manager lie about a player refusing to play? Only to later come back and say that “well, injury is the real concern” (he never said Clint was the one afraid of getting injured, a key point)…
It’s not that he wanted to leave, but that he made his desire public. This made him a malcontent, which took a lot of potential leverage from Fulham (it costs more to pry away a happy player than a disgruntled one).
Please. The Revs problems with player management run deep and are probably the #1 reason the club has struggled to win in recent years. Did the Revs treat Shalrie Joseph particularly well? Where is the soccer-specific stadium, and why hasn’t the ownership made more significant progress on that? How much money is the club spending on DP players to make the team better?
The ugly truth is that the Revs are Kraft’s red-haired stepchild and the Patriots get all the real love.