Harry Redknapp thinks Jermain Defoe has to leave the club this summer.
BT Sport’s Harry Redknapp
Former manager and current pundit Harry Redknapp has told the London Evening Standard that striker Jermain Defoe must leave Sunderland at the end of the season.
Defoe, 34, has enjoyed another superb Premier League season this term, as he has hit 14 goals in 28 games for Sunderland, scoring more than 50% of Sunderland’s goals this season.
Defoe’s performances have been so impressive that he has been handed a recall to the England setup, and whilst he didn’t feature against Germany on Wednesday, he may well play against Lithuania on Sunday.
It’s a renaissance for the striker, who was cast aside by England when he joined Toronto in 2014, and speculation now surrounds his future despite his advancing years.
Not only did BBC Sport report in January that West Ham United failed with a £6million bid to sign Defoe, but The Sun suggested earlier this week that the Hammers will again try to re-sign Defoe this summer.
It’s claimed that Defoe can leave Sunderland on a free transfer if they suffer relegation to the Championship, with the Premier League’s bottom club in danger of losing their star striker.
That opens the door for West Ham to finally re-sign Defoe, over 13 year after he left the club for Tottenham Hotspur having hit 41 goals in 105 games for the Hammers.
Sunderland’s Jermain Defoe looks dejected
Now, pundit and former manager Harry Redknapp has told the London Evening Standard that Defoe has to leave Sunderland this summer to keep his hopes of a spot in England’s 2018 World Cup alive, as Sunderland simply aren’t good enough for him at this stage in his career.
“Jermain will almost certainly have to move clubs to keep his hopes alive, though,” said Redknapp. “He won’t want to play in the Championship and I doubt Sunderland will be able to keep him if they go down anyway because he’d be on too much money. He has to be playing in the Premier League and although David Moyes has done everything he can, the squad is what it is: not good enough.”
“They scraped over the line in the last few years but their time is up this season. No disrespect to Sunderland but if he goes to a better team that creates more chances, he’ll score even more goals. And if he does that, he’ll be bang there to be included in the squad, at least as an impact player who could come off the bench and get you a goal,” he added.
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