Fulham's Finest

Clint Dempsey has an opportunity to rise from the ashes and be a hero at Craven Cottage. I’d certainly take Deuce back.

Everything I’ve heard on the situation says Clint Dempsey’s burned just about every bridge at Fulham.  Hell, he’s also probably set fire to a few roads and buildings on his way (metaphorically, of course).  Point being, he’s probably not welcome at Craven Cottage anymore, nor would he want to go back.

HOWEVER…

Things change. Daily. We’ve noticed that as fans. And with Mousa Dembele’s  departure, a door has opened for a man formerly not welcome.

Let me preface this by saying this is not at all probable, and Clint is still almost certainly going to be sold. But now, a better option in the long term may have been revealed that was previously not available.

What if Clint Dempsey came back?

There’s definitely a spot in the squad for him. Who knows if he’s welcome anymore, but there’s a massive hole that he could help fill.  And on top of all that, he’d be a hero to the fans.  When the team needs him the most, he comes back.

Think about it. It’s the perfect hero story. In fact, it’d make a great movie. Man with all the talent in the world adored by fans, wins Player of the Year and becomes leading goalscorer. Goes to his head, becomes cocky, fights with the manager, wants to be sold, nobody comes knocking.  Has an epiphany, Dembele leaves, team needs him more than ever, has a change of heart and returns at a time of great need. That’s the stuff great scripts are made of!

Sure the team has pulled his contract extension off the table, but if Dempsey really came back and asked for his contract to be extended, would they really say no? Absolutely not.

It’s clearly his best option right now as well. All the other rumored moves would be lateral or downward, as it’s obvious the club is just trying to offload him to anyone who will take him, and he’s just trying to get out of Fulham.

But does he really want to make a lateral move to Sunderland? Would he really want to move downwards to West Ham? Or would he stay and be the hero at Fulham, guiding them to a top-10 finish in a rebuild season and greater things in the future? I think it’s pretty obvious at this point he’s not playing Champions League football like he wanted.  The clubs he was hoping for didn’t come calling.

So what now? He probably still gets sold. My money’s on Sunderland. But is that really the best move for Clint Dempsey? I think Fulham would welcome him back with open arms if he were to return at this time of great need.