Dempsey and Podolski would be a bloody good attempt to get more goals into the squad. At ten million he's good business.

Good player but let's be honest, we'd all prefer Kagawa (let alone Götze/Hazard).

Klaus wrote:

Dempsey and Podolski would be a bloody good attempt to get more goals into the squad. At ten million he's good business.

I agree. Goals we need, goals he brings.

He's a pretty good player who's having a career year.

What's that about Sagna? Hadn't heard that anywhere else.

He's got knock. Like clap, but less serious.

If we sign Podolski, I'm not sure I think there's room for another senior attacking player here unless someone we're not expecting leaves the club.

asajoseph wrote:

If we sign Podolski, I'm not sure I think there's room for another senior attacking player here unless someone we're not expecting leaves the club.

I think that Podolski in is a cover for RvP out, so maybe Dempsey in as well ?

We aren't going to sign Podolski to ONLY play when Van Persie is out (i.e. the roll Chamakh has played this season - bugger all!).

If we get Podolski, I would expect to see a lot of him up the left, as well as taking the pressure off Robin up the middle (i.e. covering for injury, and allowing to come off after 70 minutes every now and then, and maybe even resting him). With that in mind, and Theo, Gervinho, Chamberlain and maybe Miyaichi coming back as well, I'd be surprised to see space for Dempsey open up anywhere.

We have people scouting Dempsey? I thought they only scouted youngsters.

Agent trying to get more money out of Fulham and/or drum up interest.

Podolslki / Dempsey would be very good summer.
What do people want? An exotic name or someone who can come in and perform from day one?

I think people hope for a Kagawa/Hazard signing, but there are only a handful of players like that on the market this summer. Most of them are unlikely to move to begin with, and if they do richer clubs than us will be in for them.

Claudius wrote:

Podolslki / Dempsey would be very good summer.
What do people want? An exotic name or someone who can come in and perform from day one?

We're pretty well stocked in the positions Dempsey plays already so if we're signing someone else to go into that area of the pitch I'd rather we signed a real world beater.

Unless you think we're signing him as back up for RVP in which case I'd rather a proper striker.

Good player, settled in London and a pretty proven goal scorer with tons of premiership experience. Hard to see a negative if we were to sign him although I can't quite work out where/when he would play. Be a good signing but I can't really see it happening.

Dempsey would be a decent squad player for us. Wouldn't say no for about 10-12 mill. He could do the left forward position in the matches where we need solidity and fight rather than pace and skill, ie in the matches that Yossi and Ramsey have been playing on the wing.

asajoseph wrote:

We aren't going to sign Podolski to ONLY play when Van Persie is out (i.e. the roll Chamakh has played this season - bugger all!).

If we get Podolski, I would expect to see a lot of him up the left, as well as taking the pressure off Robin up the middle (i.e. covering for injury, and allowing to come off after 70 minutes every now and then, and maybe even resting him). With that in mind, and Theo, Gervinho, Chamberlain and maybe Miyaichi coming back as well, I'd be surprised to see space for Dempsey open up anywhere.

That's more or less my view on the situation. Dempsey would be a great squad addition, but reckon he has reached this level from playing consistently week in week out. If he is not going to be a starter for us, I think his effectiveness will be diminished the longer he stays on the bench. We have so many options now, that realistically we would have to offload some of those who we currently include in matchday squads rather than just replace those out on loan to free up space for him.

Dempsey has been my favorite American player since he broke into the US NT. I'd be absolutely thrilled if Arsenal signed him, not because he's the quality we need, but simply because I really like him as a player. Don't think he'd do as well here, if he even got the games, which would be a shame...but I'd be thrilled nevertheless.

asajoseph wrote:

We aren't going to sign Podolski to ONLY play when Van Persie is out (i.e. the roll Chamakh has played this season - bugger all!).

If we get Podolski, I would expect to see a lot of him up the left, as well as taking the pressure off Robin up the middle (i.e. covering for injury, and allowing to come off after 70 minutes every now and then, and maybe even resting him). With that in mind, and Theo, Gervinho, Chamberlain and maybe Miyaichi coming back as well, I'd be surprised to see space for Dempsey open up anywhere.

Sorry, what I meant in my previous post by van Persie out was: not at the club anymore. As Robin's contract is up in the air at the moment, Wenger might just have made sure we've got someone to replace him if he decides that his chances of winning trophies with Arsenal are too slim.

Klaus wrote:

Dempsey and Podolski would be a bloody good attempt to get more goals into the squad. At ten million he's good business.

There is no way Fulham will let him go for £10m if his contract isn´t running out.

EDIT: See that he pretty much is to Fulham what RVP is to is contractwise.
Hmm. Nah, still want someone better!

He's been one of my top scorers in fantasy football for 2 or 3 years! Generally one of the first names I pick at the start and never take out.

Given this one a bit more thought and I say; fuck it, let's get him.

don't need another player the same level as gervinho/walcott. we need one level higher. this is just agent talk. plus, i don't really see room in the squad for him if podolski is coming.

Dempsey Shmempsey.

kamikaze wrote:

don't need another player the same level as gervinho/walcott. we need one level higher. this is just agent talk. plus, i don't really see room in the squad for him if podolski is coming.

This guy is higher than Walcott / Gervinho on average. Walcott may reach bigger highs, but over the course of a season, this guy will be more dependable. It would be like Valencia vs Nani.

Maybe we'll look to sell Gervinho? Unlikely, but you never know. I liked Gervinho, but I don't know whether it's worth persisting with an attacking player who can't shoot. We should have seen those early signs with Chamakh.

But I can't see us paying 10 million for a 29 year old Dempsey. It was worth it with Arteta, but I don't see Wenger making a habbit of that kind of deal. On the other hand, maybe he now sees the short term benifits of PL experienced proffesionals with a top attitude.

What positions can he play anyway ?

everywhere except the first line.

How do you think he'd do in the Rosicky role?

There's no such thing...

He's more at home as a wide player isn't he?
Runs at players and dribbles as opposed to passing the ball around.
Draws loads of fouls in dangerous areas.

For all you stat lovers
Clint has scored 37 percent of Fulham's goals in the EPL this season.
Add in his five assists and he's been involved in 49 percent of Fulham's scores, the second-highest rate in the EPL behind only Robin.

I'm definitely on board with this, £10 million is not excessive for a player that effective and with that level of PL experience.

On the minus side I've seen it mentioned that he can sometimes go missing when played in positions that don't allow for him to use his main skills (running at defences, dribbling?).
Also that he can seem disinterested when the ball isn't coming his way and that he shoots even when the scoring chances are not really on.
I'm not sure any of those points would be enough to put me off.
He'd be good enough to challenge for a first team place plus he'd give us some much longed for strength and depth.

Nela wrote:

How do you think he'd do in the Rosicky role?

in the hot tub next to Diaby? i think we'd all excel i that role

Now that Cesc is gone I didn't really know how to refer to it other than 'the Rosicky role' since we always used to call it 'the Cesc role.' I'm of the opinion that Wilshere will take over when he's fit, but not everyone agrees. So if I said 'Wilshere role' most people would probably think I was talking about what has now become 'the Arteta role.' And if we buy a DM in the summer (as Wenger seems interested in) does the former 'Wilshere role,' which is now 'the Arteta role' become 'the Song role'?

Ok, I guess I'll just call it the plain old AM role.

Anyway, I'm probably in the minority but I don't have a lot of faith in Rosicky as backup AM going into next year. So after all that, my question is simply whether or not Dempsey could do a good job there as backup?

Why the obsession with roles though?
For me it's very limiting to view it in those terms.
Get your best midfielders playing in a position that brings out the best in them and maximises their contribution to the team as a whole.

I already answered, Dempsey can do a good job anywhere except for in the first line...

But seriously, there is no such thing as a 'Rosicky role', that's elevating him beyond his station.

I think Rosicky has done very well the past couple of months and I prefer him to Ramsey right now. But I wasn't all that thrilled when he signed an extension because I don't really think he should play a big part going forward and I think we need a better second choice attacking midfielder than he is.