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SANDY, Utah -- As Clint Dempsey closes in on Landon Donovan's U.S. national team scoring record, manager Bruce Arena feels that the player still has plenty more to give both at club and international level. "[Dempsey] has a bunch of good years still ahead of him," said Arena a day before Saturday's friendly against Venezuela. "With the national team, I think as we continue to surround him with good players, he's still is a player that we believe can give us quality minutes and be an important player." Dempsey is currently sitting on 56 international goals, just one back of Donovan's U.S mark of 57. With three games over the next 10 days -- including World Cup qualifiers against Trinidad & Tobago and Mexico, Dempsey will have a chance to grab the record for himself. "[Dempsey's] career has been impressive," said Arena. "When he left MLS I certainly had my doubts that he could be a player that could earn significant minutes and move to big clubs in Europe, but he proved everyone wrong." Indeed he did, with Dempsey excelling for Fulham over five-plus seasons before scoring 12 goals in all competitions during a single season with Tottenham Hotspur. It was Arena who first brought Dempsey into the U.S. national team back in 2004, and he was quick to recall the "tremendous goal" Dempsey scored against Ghana at the 2006 World Cup. Over the years, Dempsey has continued to deliver, scoring goals in the 2010 and 2014 World Cups as well. Dempsey's career looked to be in jeopardy last fall when he was diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat that sidelined him for the latter portion of the MLS season. But the 34-year-old has rebounded to score four goals so far in MLS this season, while also finding the net four times in a pair of World Cup qualifiers back in March. "I think his illness last year allowed him to reflect on himself a little bit as a player and person, and I think it's brought a different perspective to him both on and off the field," said Arena. "Today, I see a quality player who is in a good place. It's been a great run for him."
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