One point above the drop zone and only Aston Villa have scored less goals. Oh, and they also have Jozy Altidore.
Things are not the best for Sunderland fans at the minute, but the seemingly imminent signing of former Premier League turned MLS star Jermain Defoe will change all of that – and get rid of Altidore to boot.
Defoe may be demanding the big bucks from the Black Cats in terms of his wage packet, but he can score goals make no mistake of that.
He will take some of the pressure off Connor Wickham et al up top and whilst at 32 years of age it is clear that the Toronto FC forward is no spring chicken, the Englishman still has some pace in his locker – but more vitally than that, he knows where the back of the net is.
For a player who is as natural a goalscorer as Defoe, as long as the ball is at his feet and the service is provided to him, he will find the back of the net.
He is not a one man team, nor is he a player who claims that every club he joins is his ‘boyhood club.’ Former teammate Robbie Keane he is not. What Defoe is however is dedicated and a player who will give it his all every single game – you don’t get to sit 14th on the all time Premier League goalscorers list unless you are.
It is the spark and bit of creativity Sunderland have often missed this season, the player to put the ball into the back of the net.
We saw against Chelsea that the club can defend as well as anyone when they put their minds to it, and had Jose Mourinho had a bus so efficient, he would have been a Premier League champion for the third time last season. They were magnificent.
Of course, mistakes will creep in and points will be dropped, but Sunderland do not deserve to go down.
They have a manager who knows what he is doing, a defence who on their day can be close to impenetrable and some real talent in the middle of the park in the form of Jack Rodwell, Jordi Gomez and Adam Johnson – not to mention grit in Lee Cattermole. Connor Wickham knows where the back of the net is and has proven that his future lies with the club after penning a new, long term deal.
Sunderland have the real potential to move forward and become a club who do not just fight against the drop each season – and the next step in doing that is by signing Defoe.
Sunderland fans. Do you think that Defoe will net the goals and keep you safe from the drop? Let us know your thoughts below, become a guest blogger or tweet us @LaFootyettes.
10 years ago
I can’t agree. An ageing striker in a poor team playing very negative football will not score goals. Forget the pub team he’s been playing for recently and look at the last two years in the EPL Spurs a scoring ratio of 1 in 4.
He’s on the downward spiral and so are we.