Former Sunderland striker Jermain Defoe has claimed he could still play football despite having retired from the game back in March. Defoe rejoined the Black Cats in January on a short term deal after leaving Rangers on a free earlier in the month.
But the 39-year-old didn't quite enjoy the swan song both he and Sunderland wanted. While Sunderland won promotion to the Championship via the play-offs, Defoe ended up lasting just two months on Wearside before retiring from football all together.
Defoe will always be fondly remembered at the Stadium of Light for the special connection he held with Black Cats fan Bradley Lowery. He scored 37 goals in 93 games for Sunderland during his first spell, which included a stunning derby day volley against Newcastle in 2015.
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However, Defoe failed to find the back of the net on his return, which ended with him hanging his boots up in March. He made just seven appearances during his second spell, leaving some Sunderland fans let down by the striker. Recently, the 39-year-old appeared in a Tottenham Hotspur YouTube video 'The History of Harry Kane' which saw Defoe link up with his old team mate Kane.
The two chatted candidly about their careers, with Defoe revealing right at the end of the video that he believes he could still play now.
“Obviously you still get the niggles and like my ankles and my back and all that sort of stuff but I still feel, I still feel…it weren’t a case where I’m training and I can’t get my shots off, shots are getting blocked and that," explained Defoe.
"The lads were still saying to me 'JD, how are you this sharp at 39', because like you [Kane], I’ve looked after myself from day one.”
Read the transcript of Defoe and Kane's conversation from the Spurs video below...
Harry Kane: "Yeah, I'm 28 now, 29 in the summer."
Jermain Defoe: "Another 10 years, 11 years."
HK: "Yeah man, I feel good and I think the way I play as well, like I'm not relying on pace, or..."
JD: "It's perfect, it's perfect. Especially when you've got runners off you and you can just walk into those little pockets and then do your stuff and that."
HK: "How old are you now?"
JD “39 H, 39, so literally just finished."
HK: “But do you still feel good?”
JD: “Literally now, I could still play now."
HK: “Yeah, yeah."
JD: “Obviously you still get the niggles and like my ankles and my back and all that sort of stuff but I still feel, I still feel…it weren’t a case where I’m training and I can’t get my shots off, shots are getting blocked and that. The lads were still saying to me “JD, how are you this sharp at 39”, because like you [Kane], I’ve looked after myself from day one.”
