England Supporters Club

Southgate thrilled by Defoe impact

Posted by Team England at 11:13 on Monday 27 March 2017

Gareth Southgate has left the door open for Jermain Defoe to be involved in the England squad at next year’s World Cup.

The 34-year-old made his first Three Lions appearance for over three years and scored his first international goal since March 2013 as England eased to a 2-0 win over Lithuania at Wembley.

And Southgate congratulated Defoe, who has bagged 14 Premier League goals this season, on the impact he had on his return to the fold.

Southgate said: “It was a great moment for him. He was thrilled to be back involved in the squad. He has enjoyed his week immensely.

“His professionalism was great for some of the other players to see. He’s had a really positive impact on everybody.

“We selected him on form. We’ve got really good competition for places. We need to have that. For Jermain to come in, for Michael Keane to come in and play as well as he has done, has been a real bonus for us.”

He added: “We’ve got to look every time we get together as to who’s in form. I don’t know if we can have a pecking order because players that are playing well deserve that opportunity. We’ve got to have that competition for places.

“The reality is that you will always lose players to injury. It’s really important that we are able to call upon the likes of Jermain.

“But if he’s scoring goals in the Premier League and playing as well as he has this season, there’s absolutely no reason why he couldn’t [go to the World Cup].”

The victory helped England consolidate their place at the top of their World Cup qualifying group with five matches remaining.

They are five points clear of Slovenia, having won four of their opening five matches.

Southgate said: “It’s in our hands which is the most important thing.

“We still have a lot to do. The home games are the important ones for us in terms of the direct opposition. We know what going to Scotland is going to be like and we’ve got to go and play on a plastic pitch in Lithuania.

“There’s still plenty to do.”

England’s next World Cup qualifier is in Scotland on Saturday 10 June followed by a friendly in France three days later.