U.S. midfielder Clint Dempsey made his return to action for Fulham on Thursday, coming on in the 60th minute in the Cottagers’ 3-1 loss to Juventus in Europa League play in Turin.
Dempsey came on for Simon Davies to make his first appearance since suffering a knee injury in mid-January. The injury cost Fulham one of its leading scorers this season and sent shivers into the U.S. Men’s national team, which topped El Salvador but lost to the Netherlands earlier this month with its gritty midfielder on the shelf.
Rumors were abound following Dempsey’s injury in January, including ones that had Dempsey set to undergo surgery for cruciate ligament damage that would potentially punctuate the Americans’ already mounting injury woes heading into the World Cup.
But the severity of the injury was soon dispelled and Dempsey never in fact went under the knife, and Fulham officials stated in mid February they expected the Texas native would be back in uniform before the end of the EPL season.
Thursday’s appearance validated that optimism, and likely eased most concerns about Dempsey’s potential readiness for the World Cup. He’ll face a tough return stretch to Premiership form in the coming weeks, however, starting with a match against frontrunner Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday.
Following the tilt with the Red Devils, Fulham faces the return leg against Juventus in London on March 18 and matches with Manchester City and Tottenham before March is through.
David Trezeguet scored the third of Juventus’ three first-half goals in the 45th minute in the win, while Dickson Etuhu scored the lone tally for Fulham.
