On this day in 2022 Jermain Defoe retired from football halfway through Sunderland's season. But let's try and focus on the man's legendary career before the disappointing second spell at SAFC...
Defoe began his career at West Ham under Harry Redknapp, where he made a name for himself and earned a move to Spurs. He originally spent four years at White Hart Lane, scoring 43 goals in 139 appearances. The diminutive forward then joined Pompey on deadline day in January 2008, who were managed by his former manager Redknapp.
At Fratton Park, Defoe became a lot more prolific and scored 15 goals in 31 appearances, just shy of a goal every two games. After a successful season, Defoe had a lot of suitors but opted to return to Tottenham in January 2009, following Redknapp once again. In a lengthy spell at Spurs, Defoe became Tottenham’s all-time leading goalscorer in Europe.
During his time in the Premier League, Defoe became famous for being a ‘super sub’. He was perhaps overlooked at times by the media, but he’s actually scored the most Premier League goals after coming off the bench, with 24.
At 31 years old, Defoe moved overseas to sign for MLS side Toronto. As it was their off-season, he was immediately loaned back to Tottenham where he played another two games, both as a substitute. During his time in Canada, Defoe scored an impressive 11 goals in just 19 league games. Despite this, many believed that the forward’s career was winding down as he’s taken an MLS payday.
However, everything changed when Gus Poyet realised that Jozy Altidore wasn’t the answer to our problems. In one of the greatest pieces of business in Sunderland’s history, we managed to swap Defoe for Altidore without paying a transfer fee. Yes, Defoe’s wages were high but as it turned out, they were worth every penny! The deal rose eyebrows as Defoe, 32, signed a three-and-a-half-year deal.
Defoe made his debut just a day after signing, which outlined Sunderland’s need to score some goals. It was a 2-1 defeat to his former club Spurs, who gave him a warm welcome. He failed to find the back of the net, and it was the first time in his career that he hadn’t scored on his debut. The ex-West Ham forward’s first goal in red and white came against Burnley, and it was a true poachers finish.
The striker failed to make a major impact in his first season on Wearside, scoring just four league goals in 17 games. Poyet failed to get the best out of Defoe, which was a big part of him losing his job in March 2015. The following gaffer was Dick Advocaat, who was brought in to help stave off relegation. In Advocaat’s second game in charge, Defoe wrote himself into the history books. Costel Pantilimon launched a long ball forward, Steven Fletcher nodded it on and Defoe struck the ball with the sweetest left-footed volley you’ll ever see. The 22-yard volley was on the stroke of half time, and when celebrating Defoe was visibly emotional.
On the opening day of the 2015/16 season, Defoe netted in a 4-2 loss to eventual champions Leicester City. The goal meant he’d scored at least once in an astounding 15 Premier League seasons! Despite scoring pretty regularly, the team as a whole were underperforming and Dick Advocaat was relieved of his duties. When Sam Allardyce was the next manager through the door, many feared it would be the end for Defoe. He wasn’t the typical Big Sam striker. He was small, not much of a hard worker and not physically dominant at all.
However, Allardyce actually managed to convert Defoe into a brilliant all-rounder. His finishing had always been second to none, but his hold-up play improved astronomically under Big Sam. He spearheaded an attack that helped get us out of jail for free once again, including two amazing home wins against Chelsea and Everton.
Although his goalscoring was impressive as always, it was Defoe’s off-the-pitch antics that grabbed headlines. He formed an unbreakable bond with Bradley Lowery, and became Bradley’s hero and best friend. He even walked onto Wembley’s pitch with Bradley when playing for England.
We all know what happened after Allardyce left for the ill-fated England job. Everything spiralled out of control for Sunderland, and we were left with a double relegation. Despite the dire football played under David Moyes, Defoe continued to perform and continued to score regularly. He struck up a brief partnership with cult hero Victor Anichebe, who was one of several ex-Everton players that Moyes turned to in his hour of need.
Defoe’s last goal in red and white came in a 2-0 win over Hull City, just a week after our inevitable relegation was confirmed. He scored in the 92nd minute to seal the win after Billy Jones put us ahead after an hour. We all knew in the back of our minds that Defoe would leave if we were relegated, but it still hurt when his free transfer to Bournemouth was made official.
He played a bit-part role in his second stint at the Cherries, playing just 28 times and scoring 4 goals in three years. He was initially loaned to Rangers in 2019, and after impressing Steven Gerrard the ex-Liverpool midfielder signed him permanently.
As we all know, Defoe returned to the SoL at 39 years old, for 'one last dance'. He retired just seven games later in the middle of a promotion push, seemingly unwilling to fight for his place up front with the sensational form of Ross Stewart and Nathan Broadhead. It tarnished his reputation with many Sunderland fans, who in hindsight saw his return to Sunderland as nothing more than a failed PR stunt.
Despite a underwhelming end to his career, fans can always look at Defoe's first stint with font memories and appreciate those seasons where his goals single-handedly kept us in the Premier League.
