Jermain Defoe made a successful return to international football on Sunday, scoring in England’s 2-0 victory over fellows Lithuania in a World Cup qualifier.
After the match, the veteran spoke of his aims for the rest of the season for himself as well as his club. “I’ve got to go back to my club and finish the season strongly, like all the lads really, and we’ll just see what happens,” Defoe told ITV in his post-match interview. “Like I’ve always done I’ll just keep my head down and keep working hard.”
Despite Sunderland struggling in the Premier League this season and seemingly headed for relegation, the 34 year old has been one of the few bright sparks in the team, having scored 14 goals.
His form was good enough to convince Gareth Southgate to call him up for national team duty for the first time since November 2013.
Defoe will be aiming to make the England squad for the 2018 World Cup and should Sunderland be relegated, he will likely find a new club, with West Ham reportedly being interested.
