High time Defoe got a move on
DAVID MOYES cannot believe Sunderland’s star striker is on a deal that allows him to leave on a free now that they are down.
The real scandal is that the club did not get their act together once Jermain Defoe (above) saved them from relegation last season.
The Black Cats have nobody to blame but themselves for their shambolic exit.
Had owner Ellis Short (below) stumped up the funds for the club to have a right go over the last two transfer windows, they would not be wondering when they will ever pitch up again at the Emirates.
Instead Sunderland circled the drain once more with unimaginative free transfers and poor signings before going down.
This was a half-decent farewell to north London with the horse already over the horizon, but that was about it.
The Wearsiders would never have been able to sign Defoe in the first place had it not been for the clause which allows the England striker to seize his second chance at a major tournament by playing Premier League football next season.
Bournemouth, West Ham, West Brom and a number of other clubs all want him, and it is easy to see why. He is too good for Sunderland right now.
Sixteen goals this season – 15 in the Premier League – and 18 last year tell their own story.
People may point to his age, 34, but he doesn’t drink, doesn’t smoke and remains in fantastic physical condition.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic, with his 28 goals for Manchester United, proved to us all that class really is permanent.
Once Defoe signs for another top-flight club this summer, he will too.