Dempsey happy with Spurs central role
Tottenham's Clint Dempsey stated that he does not mind being employed in a central position despite having made his mark as a threat down the wings with Fulham.
By ESPNSTAR.com staff
Dempsey was most notable for playing down the wings with the Cottagers as he repeatedly cut inside and carried out deadly shots that troubled many a Premier League custodian. In this manner, he scored 17 goals in the league and was one of the standout performers last season.
Over the summer, he became a top transfer target for the likes of Arsenal and Liverpool but Andre Villas-Boas secured the American's signature on transfer deadline day, much to the surprise of many Spurs fans.
He has struggled to replicate the same level of goalscoring nous that he displayed with Fulham, however, and only has one goal to his name from four appearances thus far. At Tottenham, he faces fierce competition down the wings with Welsh star Gareth Bale, long-serving speedster Aaron Lennon and even Kyle Walker having been employed down the flanks for their crossing abilities.
But the United States international is happy to retrain himself in a new position and demonstrated his capability when he scored a goal against Manchester United in an advanced midfielder role.
"It [a central role] makes me more of a complete player as I can play in a number of positions at the highest level," he told the London Evening Standard while on international duty.
"I like playing in any position that allows me to attack and score goals. It was a great time to open my account and the importance of the game made it more special.
"We've been playing a lot of games lately so it's good to have got the results we have in the last few fixtures."
Spurs have a tough clash against Chelsea next in the Premier League with the Blues currently leading the league with 19 points. But Dempsey is confident that his side has the ability to take on and defeat the traditional 'big' sides after besting the Red Devils at Old Trafford.
"We know we can get results against the top teams, even away from home as we showed against United,” he continued.
“We showed a lot of character in that game, especially in the second half, and it will be no different when we play Chelsea. We will all be up for it and wanting to get the job done.
“We’re in fifth place and we can go even higher than that. We are showing we have the quality but we’ve got to keep it going. It’s not just about a few games. It’s about being consistent for the whole season and that’s what we’re working on.
“We have a lot of confidence in our team, we work hard and we have a lot of quality. We’re happy with the run of results we’re getting and with the form we’re in, although we’re still trying to put together two strong halves of football.”