The Sunderland striker has been in fine form once again this season.
Sunderland’s Jermain Defoe
Hull City midfielder Ryan Mason has hailed Sunderland’s Jermain Defoe to the Daily Mail, saying England cannot afford to keep ignoring him.
The striker was in superb form last season, scoring 18 goals in all competitions, 15 of which came in the Premier League and almost singlehandedly kept his team in the division.
That led to calls for him to return to the England squad but Roy Hodgson instead elected to take Marcus Rashford to Euro 2016.
Sam Allardyce and Gareth Southgate have since ignored him in recent squads, despite his six goals in 11 league games this season.
And Mason, who played with the veteran striker at Tottenham Hotspur, cannot understand how he continues to be overlooked.
“He’s an Englishman and he’s scoring goals in the Premier League, so I don’t think it really matters what age you are,” he told the Daily Mail.
“You can’t ignore that if you’re part of the England set-up. Jermain is a fantastic professional and I can’t speak highly enough of what he’s done throughout his career. He’s carrying on doing that now at his age. It’s phenomenal.”
Sunderland’s Jermain Defoe
Whether Defoe continues to be ignored by the national side remains to be seen.
He is not getting any younger but if he continues to score goals, especially in a struggling side, then the calls for him to return will only continue.
His first priority should be improving Sunderland’s fortunes, though, with the Black Cats currently bottom of the table and heavily reliant on him to perform and get them out of their current predicament, as he did last season.
Sunderland’s Jermain Defoe celebrates scoring their second goal with Adnan Januzaj
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
