Jermain Defoe is set to cap a sensational turnaround in his international career and start his first England game in almost four years, reports The Daily Telegraph.
The 34-year-old was a surprise name in Gareth Southgate’s England squad having not featured on the international stage since coming on as a substitute in a 2-0 defeat to Chile in November 2013.
However, Defoe has been in fine goalscoring form for Premier League strugglers Sunderland and benefitted from injuries to Harry Kane, Wayne Rooney and Daniel Sturridge to get back into the international set-up.
The Sunderland striker was an unused substitute for England’s 1-0 defeat against Germany but has now been tipped to replace Jamie Vardy in attack against Lithuania on Sunday to make his first England start since May 2013 (vs Ireland).
In fact, only Zlatan Ibrahimovic (15) has scored more goals in Europe’s top five leagues than Defoe (14) of players older than 32.
For more stats on Jermain Defoe, click here to visit his WhoScored player page
