In a showdown between two of the USA’s best attackers, Landon Donovan prevailed providing both the crosses that resulted in two perfect strikes as Everton beat Clint Dempsey and Fulham. The man from Nacogdoches had a quieter evening.
Donovan has had an instant impact on Everton making the best of his two month loan and Dempsey is on par to repeat last season’s success, most recently scoring a hat trick against Newcastle. It is great to see both make waves and equally tempting to frame this as a contest to decide who is the USA’s best attacking player. All this of course benefits a nascent sport with an increased visibility in the big European leagues.
The smart money is on Donovan making a permanent move to the EPL once his contract with the LA Galaxy enters its final year in 2013.