Clint Dempsey has scored crucial goals for Fulham with the US striker establishing himself as one of the most clinical goal-poachers in the Premier League.

Since joining Fulham in 2007, Dempsey has been a regular for the Cottagers and recently surpassed Brian McBride as the top American scorer of all time in English football.

Dempsey is also a creative player, providing crucial assists to his team-mates on many occasions.

His name crops up regularly during transfer windows but Dempsey has always denied the rumours, even though he openly admits that he would love to play Champions League football before he retires, something that is unlikely to happen at a modest club like Fulham.

Dempsey was born on March 9, 1983 in Texas. He played for one of the top youth soccer clubs in his country, the Dallas Texans, before joining the Furman University team. In 2004, he was drafted by Major League Soccer club New England Revolution.

Initially, Dempsey was troubled by injuries but still managed to score 25 goals in 71 appearances for the Revolution.

In December 2006, Fulham offered the MLS £2 million to sign Dempsey, a record fee for a player in the US league at the time.

The Londoners tied Dempsey to a long-term contract.

He made his Fulham debut in a 1-1 home draw against Tottenham Hotspur on January 20, 2007 and his first goal for his new club came on May 5 in the 1-0 win over Liverpool at Craven Cottage, saving the Londoners from relegation that year.

In season 2009/10, Dempsey played a big part in helping Fulham reach the final of the Europa League. It was his remarkable goal, a spectacular chip from 20 yards, against Juventus that earned Fulham a 5-4 aggregate victory over the Turin giants.

This season Dempsey con-tinued where he left off in the previous campaign, scoring a brace against FC Dnipro in the Europa League.

Then, he was on the mark against Liverpool in early December, a goal that saw him better McBride’s tally of 36 to become the top US scorer in the Premiership.

Dempsey’s debut for the US national team came in the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship in the United Arab Emirates. He made his first appearance for the senior team on November 17, 2004, against Jamaica.

In the opening 2010 World Cup qualifier, Dempsey scored the fastest goal in US history when finding the net after only 53 seconds in an impressve 8-0 mauling of Barbados.

On June 12, 2010, Dempsey became the second US player (after McBride) to score in more than one World Cup match, hitting the equaliser against England, and on February 29, 2012, he scored the winner in an international friendly against Italy.

That goal allowed his country to gain their first win over Italy in 11 games since 1934.

In 83 appearances for the US national team, Dempsey scored a total of 22 goals.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.