A free-scoring striker for Fulham, Clint Dempsey became a sought after commodity in the Premier League, with a move to Liverpool on the cards, until Spurs stepped in on the last day of the summer 2012 transfer window to buy the American.

Both parties had made it clear that a move to Anfield was their intention, so when the Merseyside club would not pay the fee demanded by Fulham, Spurs moved to add Clint to their attacking options.

Back in Texas, where Clint was born, he began his football career with local side Dallas Texans after being spotted kicking about when his brother went to a trial with the outfit.  However, Dempsey's progress was halted because his family could not afford to send him to the club and his sister was making a name for herself as a promising talent in the world of tennis.  However, the parents of his team-mates clubbed together to fund his expenses and he continued to play for the club until he went off to Furman University, where he played for the Uni side - The Paladins.  Between High School and College, his tennis playing sister Jennifer suffered a brain aneurysm and died at the age of 16.  This drove Clint on to succeed at soccer and dedicate his career to her.

Having been a very good college player, Clint was put into the MLS SuperDraft in 2004 and was the eighth player picked out and his club was the New England Revolution.  Such was his success that he was voted Rookie of the Year having scored ten times in his first MLS season, then went on to play for a couple more seasons, helping the side to the MLS Cup Final in 2005 and 2006, but the team lost on both occasions.

His play attracted the attention of Fulham, who offered $4 million for the forward and when his work permit was obtained in January 2007, he signed to join US team-mate Brian McBride at Craven Cottage.  Made his debut in a 1-1 home draw with Spurs and his first and only goal of the season at home to Liverpool in a 1-0 win towards the end of the season was critical in helping Fulham survive a relegation battle.

Playing a regular part in the Cottagers matches, his scoring helped establish him as a fans' favourite and at the end of the 2008-09 season, Clint had finished top scorer for the second season running and a seventh place finish earned the club a place in the Europa League.  This European campaign went better than anyone at the club could have imagined and the side reached the final, having beaten  Juventus on the way.  Having missed two months of the season with cruciate knee ligament damage, his return in the away game against Juventus was welcome and his goal (the fourth in a 4-1 win) at home against the Italian giants was even more so.  Coming on as a substitute in the final against Atletico Madrid, Dempsey could not help Fulham beat the Spanish opposition, who could only beat the West London team in the last five minutes of extra time 2-1.

Having made his US national debut in 2007, Dempsey was a regular international and in 2010 represented his country at the World Cup finals, scoring against England in a 1-1 draw.

The following season, Clint again topped the Fulham scoring charts and  also became the highest scoring Fulham player in the Premier League.  In 2011-12, he went on to score 21 goals for the club in all competitions, while also reaching 50 goals for the club and becoming the highest scoring American in the Premier League.  His feats earned him fourth place in the Football Writer's Footballer of the Year award.

At the start of the 2012-13 campaign, it appeared that he had fallen out with Fulham manager Martin Jol, as he was not being played and it became clear that he would be leaving the club before the end of the transfer window.  However, his expected destination of Liverpool failed to materialise and his move across London turned some of the fans against him and there was also come fall-out between Fulham and Liverpool, who announced on their owners website that the player had signed for them.

As it was he joined Spurs and after a slow start, he began to show why he had become such a valued player with Fulham, making goals for team-mates and chipping in with a few of his own to help Spurs gain some momentum to their season.  His equaliser on a snowy evening against Manchester United in the last minute will be one to remember.

However, in the summer of 2013, Spurs received an offer from the MLS on behalf of Seattle Sounders for the services of Clint Dempsey and with an offer equal to what they had paid Fulham for the forward, he returned to the States and a new adventure in his homeland.