West Ham United failed to re-sign Sunderland striker Jermain Defoe in January.
Sunderland striker Jermain Defoe has told talkSPORT that it’s always nice to be wanted having been linked with a move back to former club West Ham United.
Defoe, 34, shows no signs of slowing down despite his advanced years, as he has smashed 14 goals in 24 Premier League games for Sunderland this season, serving as their leading goalscorer and main hope in their fight against relegation.
The prototypical goal poacher joined Sunderland from Toronto in January 2015 with serious question marks about his ability to continue scoring goals in the Premier League having spent time in Major League Soccer, but he’s proven all his doubters wrong.
Sunderland’s Jermain Defoe applauds fans
After scoring 15 league goals last season, Defoe is on course to eclipse that goal return this term, and having scored twice against Crystal Palace last weekend, he remains Sunderland’s best chance of staying up.
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Manager David Moyes has relied on Defoe for goals all season, the Scot will certainly be delighted to have kept hold of the veteran striker amid speculation over his future during the January transfer window.
Sunderland’s Jermain Defoe celebrates scoring
As reported by Sky Sports, West Ham United made a £6million move to try and re-sign Defoe in January, but gave up on their bid after Sunderland’s refusal to do a deal.
Having hit 41 goals in 105 games for West Ham before leaving for Tottenham in 2004, many wanted to see Defoe make his return to East London – but Sunderland unsurprisingly wanted to keep him at the Stadium of Light despite his age.
Now, Defoe has told talkSPORT that he is focused on his career with Sunderland, and whilst the rumours of West Ham interest were nice to read, he’s focused on the Black Cats moving forward.
“I’m totally focused on scoring goals, I’m totally focused on helping this football club stay in the Premier League,” said Defoe. “For me, that’s the best way to approach it so I’m not distracted, I’ll just keep my head down and work hard.”
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“Even with the speculation about West Ham, it’s always nice when you’re wanted. But at the end of the day, I’ve been a part of this game for a long time and that’s part and parcel of it now, so it was easy for me to see it and just think, ‘OK, that’s nice people want me, but I’ve got to be focused on Sunderland’,” he added.
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