Savage implores title-chasing Spurs to sign Defoe

Matt Stead

Tottenham should sign Jermain Defoe if they want to win the Premier League title, according to Robbie Savage.

Mauricio Pochettino’s side sit third in the table after their 2-0 victory over Chelsea on Wednesday.

They are now just seven points behind the Premier League leaders, with the north Londoners having won their last five league fixtures.

But Savage, writing for the Daily Mirror, believes that Sunderland forward Defoe could be the key to maintaining a title challenge. That will be 34-year-old Defoe, currently plying his trade at a relegation-threatened side.

‘If they want to make a statement that they mean business, Spurs should go all-out to bring Jermain Defoe back to White Hart Lane for a third stint,’ he wrote in the Mirror.

‘Why? First of all, they are going to need back-up for Harry Kane. If he was to suffer another injury, we have already seen that £22 million summer signing Vincent Janssen isn’t up to it as his replacement. Or not yet, at any rate.

‘Secondly, there is no point in making a massive £40-50m bid for a marquee signing this month, because Europe’s top strikers will want to play in the Champions League – where Spurs needlessly came up short before Christmas.

‘And third, the fans would welcome Defoe back with open arms. Although he is 34, he is a proven goalscorer – 18 goals for a struggling Sunderland side last season and another 11 for the Black Cats so far this term.’