Jermain Defoe admits he will be judged on his goals return after signing for Sunderland in time to make his debut at former club Spurs on Saturday.
The 32-year-old has penned a three-and-a-half-year deal at the Stadium of Light having been convinced to head to the north-east by former Tottenham coach Gus Poyet, who he played under at White Hart Lane.
Sunderland are the Premier League’s second-lowest scorers with just 18, and there is pressure on Defoe to hit the ground running given their struggles in front of goal. ‘As a forward, you get judged on scoring goals,’ said the ex-England striker.
‘When you have set high standards of scoring goals over your career, people expect goals. Hopefully I can play as many games as I can and get the chances, and I believe if I get the chances I will score goals.’
Defoe, who has quit the MLS after one season with Toronto FC, added: ‘I’m happy to be here. I’m delighted. I’m just looking forward to the challenge. I remember a few years back, at some stage, I thought something was going to happen.
‘It’s a great club and I’ve always enjoyed coming up here and playing against Sunderland because of the stadium and the fans. It’s a great place to play football. I’m looking forward to it.’
He went on: ‘It was good over in Toronto, I enjoyed it. But for me, the Premier League is the best league in the world and when you step away from it, you realise how good it is. To be honest, I just missed it. I wanted to come back and be back in the Premier League scoring goals.’
As part of Defoe's deal Jozy Altidore - who failed to score a goal this season - will move in the opposite direction.
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