Jermain Defoe has revealed in an interview with the Athletic that one of the reasons for his early retirement in his second spell at Sunderland was due to stopping the progress of the younger forwards at the club.
Defoe enjoyed a successful and emotional first spell at the club between 2015 – 2017 in which he scored 37 goals for the club and struck up a friendship with young Sunderland fan Bradley Lowey, who has since passed away.
He returned in January 2022, but it didn’t go to plan with him making just seven goalless appearances before his mid-season retirement.
Defoe said: “I felt like I was blocking the path for the young forwards at the club coming through just by being there.
"When you’re not playing and just training it becomes harder. I was frustrated because I was told I was going to play and try and get the team promoted, which they did anyway.
“It wasn’t about the money; the contract was just a basic one.” Defoe added.
The former England striker also revealed that he turned down other clubs that had offered him two-year contracts, stating: “Nah, I wanted to go back to Sunderland and probably finish there.”
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