Rangers hero Jermain Defoe wants to make his mark in management after leaving a coaching role at Tottenham Hotspur to focus on the next step of his career.
Defoe ended his playing journey in March 2022 and then began a transition into helping the next generation flourish in the Spurs youth academy.
That meant he crossed paths with a familiar foe, ex-Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou, in north London.
Asked if he'd ever discussed the prospect of becoming part of Postecoglou's first team set-up at Spurs, the former England internationalist replied: "There was no discussion. Obviously I was at the academy and I was focused on doing my work in the academy with the coaches.
"You have to understand at football clubs, managers have got their staff, and I suppose people that they have worked with before. Some experience coaches have come into the building.
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"I know I'm still on my journey, and the coaches that have come in, I wish them all the best and all that. But in terms of a discussion, that opportunity wasn't there for me at all."
"I actually met Ange when I was in Glasgow," he added. "I was having breakfast in a cafe one day and he was there on his laptop. We had a conversation and he's a really nice guy. He spoke about his journey and it's really unique from where he started.
"I played against him when I was at Rangers and he was at Celtic. What you see is what you get with him.
"He's a manager who wants to win. The standards that he brings to a football club is something you need.
"You look at how Tottenham played last season and it was really exciting. He's a top manager."
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Defoe was then questioned whether he wishes he had chance to play under the Greek-Aussie during his career. “100 per cent," he stated.
"He gives the players the freedom to go and express themselves. He’s definitely a manager I would have loved to have played under because he gives you that freedom that you appreciate as players.”
Defoe's three-year spell at Rangers is a memorable chapter of his life thus far - and he takes immense pride in having contributed to one of the club's most remarkable seasons in recent history by winning the Scottish Premiership title under Steven Gerrard's leadership.
“What an experience," he said about his time in Glasgow.
"I knew Rangers was a massive football club. When you go to Ibrox and you walk through those doors, you feel that history. You walk through the corridors and you’re reminded of all the trophies the club has won.
“Before you go down the tunnel and onto the pitch you see all these great players who have graced that stadium and I just wanted to make sure that when I leave the football club, my name is among those names.
“To win 55 and to do it in the manner that we did it, it was just amazing."
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The 41-year-old said in a lengthy statement last week that "All great journeys eventually come to an end", yet he's not exactly certain where he will be piling his trade next. Well, so he claims.
"I think you have just got to weigh it all up really," he told Sky Sports News. "I have always wanted to be a No.1. I think that's my sort of main objective. But I suppose in football you never know what's around the corner.
"If there was an opportunity there for me to be an assistant somewhere, just to again learn and help my development as a coach then so be it. But I think the main goal for me is to become a No.1 and become a manager somewhere."
Defoe boasts a plethora of experience from his playing career which saw him become well-loved at Spurs, Portsmouth, Toronto, Sunderland, Bournemouth and Rangers across over two decades.
He knows how unpredictable modern football can be. However, he's ready to embrace any opportunities that come in his direction whilst acknowledging the fact there's no linear way of entering first team management.
"You never know with football, it depends on the opportunity," he confessed. "When we talk about levels, I mean everyone's journey is different. Some of the managers that I've played under, when I speak to them about their journey, everyone's is different.
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"I obviously played with Steven Gerrard and then he managed me at Rangers. When I spoke to Steve about his journey, he was Under-18s coach at Liverpool and then he got the opportunity to got to Rangers. So, you just never know.
"It has to be the right environment of course, and the right club for me.
"I've got my CV and my CV is out there, so hopefully the phone rings soon because like I said, during the two years at Tottenham, I've managed to learn so much.
"When you finish playing, even if you play at the top level for 23-years, there's no guarantee that you going to be a top coach. I think it's important to put that ego to the side a little bit and start from the bottom. You have to learn and it's completely different to being a player.
"I feel like I've done that over the last two years and it's been beneficial for me."
