A fine line between excuses and explantations, but in this case I think were firmly in the explanation category. Dude hasnt been genuinely healthy or fit in a very long time. Calendar time is meaningless if injuries are involved. Healthy playing time is the only way we'll know what he's really all about these days. He hasn't been bad at all at Fulham. One goal in 600 minutes isn't a DP number, no, but lets see what happens when he comes back and has a chance to work with the side.
I thought his touch looked sharper in the more recent game. And you're blaming MLS? He looked terrible when he got there: the problem pre-dated his arrival to Seattle.
If so, then whatever screwed up Dempsey's form would have happened sometime in the summer, mid-June through August, because he looked sharp in the Germany friendly in early June, e.g. neat Gareth Bale impersonation goal.
True, but then I watched his first match for Seattle and he was a shadow of the guy who put two in against Germany. There was talk of an injury at the time, and then once he began to recover some form he separated his shoulder.
Does that mean as long as he doesn't score he is considered injured or out of form? Because of the way he plays (slow) we are not going to know a definite point when he can be considered fit and in form to be accounted for.
I'm going to try one more time to use logic and reason in all this: His last game for Spurs is on 5/19/13. He goes on international duty, plays five games from May 29th-June 18th, scoring 3 goals, 1 assist and going 90 minutes in all five games. Team goes 4-1. He then presumably starts preseason with Spurs sometime in July, goes to China, scores a couple in friendlies, and then transfers to Seattle on 8/3. He then plays with Seattle and the US from 8/10-9/13, scores once in that period of time, and then misses the next 4 weeks with a muscle strain, making his next appearance on 10/9 as a sub. He starts the next game at Portland, hits the crossbar early, separates his shoulder early, and probably stupidly stays on until the 77th minute. He's ineffective in his next start against Dallas, slightly better against LA, scoring his first goal in that one. Note that he doesn't miss any games despite carrying an injury that probably justifies resting 2-4 weeks. In the knockout game against Colorado, he has an assist, but I would say he played average in that one. In the home leg against Portland, he did everything but score. He hit the crossbar 3 times, I think. Once on a freekick, once on a shot from distance and once on a header in the 18. Ricketts robbed him one additional time with a ridiculous save. Only the most biased observers would conclude that he was poor or mediocre in that game; it was probably far and away his best appearance for SSFC; it was an above average performance. He was ineffective in the away leg, and Seattle gets knocked out on 11/7. His first half-season with SSFC ends and its a mixed bag full of glimpses of promise and injuries diminishing his effectiveness. Just like nearly every other DP that comes over in the summer. He pulls a muscle in the lead up to the friendly against Scotland in November, and thus misses both that one and the one against Austria. So that means he goes to London sometime in mid to late December having not played a game since 11/7, and begins training with Fulham. His first game with FFC is on 1/4; he's appeared in 5 games now, starting in 3 of them. So that means from 8/3 thru the first of the year he played in the equivalent of 12 games worth of minutes (1103), and over half of those had him carrying an injury during those games. These 5 games with Fulham represent literally the longest stretch of games where he wasn't hurt since June. There is nothing to be freaking out about or overreacting to with him right now. He's fine. If his fall 2013 form is the same form he's in come May, then we'll all be in agreement that it wasn't the injuries and the adjustment period, but him hitting the decline phase more rapidly than expected. But on 2/2/14, anyone who is proclaiming him "done", or "that he needs to pick it up now" or "he's in danger of losing his spot" is an insane person with either a clear bias or an inability to critically think and put things in their proper context.
In other pro sports, slumps are pretty common after signing big dollar contracts at new clubs. The pressure to show you are worth it, the change from a situation that was working for you. And Dempsey's change was a big change - much bigger than Pujols going from St Louis to California for example. And coming in mid season and with only a couple months to turn things around. I still think he will be fine. Would have preferred he hadn't done the loan and focused on getting settled and focused with the Sounders. I do not see much reason from a dramatic and permanent change of form - no major injury, not that old, and his game is not overly reliant on speed / athleticism.
Fair points, all. The big fear is of course that we're seeing an actual decline due to age, rather than a temporary dip in form. I don't think that's the case here--there are too many other factors that can explain it (plus it was a precipitous drop rather than an incremental one). I think your explanation makes more sense.
"Cooling down Clint Dempsey, F, Fulham (England) Why he's here: After three consecutive Premier League starts, Dempsey came off the bench and was beaten in the buildup on one of Southampton's goals in a 3-0 loss. What this means: Dempsey's underwhelming form, combined with the arrival of former Spurs teammate Lewis Holtby, could limit Deuce's playing time for the Cottagers during the final few weeks of his loan from MLS's Seattle Sounders." http://espnfc.com/blog/_/name/usnationalteam/id/1433?cc=5901
It would actually almost amuse me if Holtby just followed Clint around from club to club like a ghost.
With JK and his statements, it's safe to say the Dempsey is going to be a starter and a key spine player until he isn't.
we are months away from the WC. Demps will get better, stay the same, get hurt or get worse. His competition for a slot will get better, stay the same, get hurt or get worse. This, and JK's formations/tactics v. each side will dictate which and how many games Demps gets.