Clint Dempsey and American soccer stars and gripes: McBride, Wegerle, Friedel and more
With Clint Dempsey being chased Liverpool, talkSPORT looks back on the English football hits and misses from the US of A...
TOTALLY AWESOME, DUDE
ROY WEGERLE
A much-loved player at QPR, it almost didn't work out for Wegerle when he moved across the Atlantic to join Chelsea in 1986. Having failed to break into the Blues side he moved to Luton two years later and began slowly making a name for himself, with Hoops boss Don Howe shelling out £1m to take him to west London in 1990. Wearing the number 10 shirt made famous by Rodney Marsh and Stan Bowles, Wegerle enjoyed two years where his skilful performances and classy goals – especially the one against Leeds below – lit up Loftus Road.
BRIAN MCBRIDE
Before Dempsey there was McBride, Fulham's all-American hero, the two time club Player of the Season and captain during the famous relegation great escape in 2008. In his four years at the club between 2004 and 2008, he played 154 times for the Cottagers, whose fans were left in awe by the striker's bravery and commitment on the field, which was second to none. So revered was he that Fulham renamed one of Craven Cottage's bars after him in 2009.
BRAD FRIEDEL
Since joining Liverpool in 1997, the goalkeeper has won fans everywhere, with people lining up to praise his reflexes, anticipation and overall shot stopping ability. He left Liverpool in 2000 and played more than 250 times for Blackburn before Aston Villa snapped him up in 2008, with Spurs signing Friedel for nothing in 2011. Now 41, he still has one more year left to run on his Tottenham contract, a club who were previously blessed with another great American goalkeeper, too. Kasey Keller was a permanent fixture between the sticks for four years between 2001 and 2005, while countryman Tim Howard is currently at Everton having previously played for Man United.
GEE, YOU SUCK
JOHN HARKES
A fairly mediocre player, though one of the first Americans to play in the Premier League following his move in 1990, Harkes is memorable for scoring Sheffield Wednesday's goal in the 1993 League Cup final loss to Arsenal as well as the goal against Derby (below), whom he later played for. He spent a year with the Rams in the 1994/95 season and played a handful of games on loan at West Ham the year after. In America he's famous for allegedly making sweet love with international team-mate Eric Wynalda's wife – behind the players back – ahead of the 1998 World Cup.
COBI JONES
Jones moved to Coventry after representing America at the 1994 World Cup. Remembered best for falling over a lot and generally being a pretty poor player, he hotfooted it to Brazil's Vasco da Gama after spending just a season at Highfield Road. Capped 164 times for his country, Jones is highly-regarded in his homeland after playing more than 300 times for LA Galaxy and was elected into the American Hall of Fame in 2011.
JON SPECTOR
There is no shame at all in failing to make the grade at Man United, who let the defender go in 2006 after coming through their youth team, but since leaving he has failed to establish himself as a top flight defender. He joined West Ham after a loan spell at Charlton prior to his Old Trafford departure, but did not have a regular run of games at Upton Park as a result of injury and he ultimately fell down the pecking order under Avram Grant. He was sold to Birmingham in 2011 and played 33 times in the Championship last season and was part of their Europa League run.