TORONTO – Jermain Defoe isn’t going anywhere—for now.
Monday’s international transfer deadline passed without Toronto FC selling their star forward, club general manager Tim Bezbatchenko confirmed.
That’s not to say Toronto didn’t receive a serious transfer offer for Defoe’s services. They did. How serious? A source within the TFC organization told Sportsnet on Sunday that English Premier League outfit Queens Park Rangers tabled an $11 million transfer bid for Defoe.
QPR manager Harry Redknapp told BBC that he made “a big effort” to sign Defoe.
“He wanted to come home but there was no way Toronto would release him before their playoffs,” Redknapp said.
Bezbatchenko told reporters on Monday that TFC turned down a club record transfer offer for Defoe, but declined to say which team made the bid.
“We wouldn’t be doing proper service to the club if we didn’t examine the offer and explore our options,” Bezbatchenko told reporters on a conference call.
Asked if Defoe wants to be in Toronto, Bezbatchenko gave a one word answer: “Yes.”
Defoe, 31, signed a four-year deal with TFC in January. He leads the Reds in scoring this season with 11 goals in 16 Major League Soccer games. He has sat out five of TFC’s last seven matches with a nagging groin injury.
The former Spurs star’s future in Toronto became the hot topic of discussion on Sunday during a press conference that introduced Greg Vanney as the club’s new coach in place of the fired Ryan Nelsen. Bezbatchenko during the press conference confirmed that TFC was in talks with at least one club about a possible transfer for Defoe.
But Defoe is staying after TFC declined the offer.
“We have a committed player,” Bezbatchenko affirmed. “Jermain was frustrated with the course of our team, no doubt. That was one of the reasons we made the [coaching] change”
Defoe is expected to miss the Reds’ two games this week—a home-and-home series with the Philadelphia Union—and Nelsen said last week the forward likely wouldn’t return to the lineup until late September.
“We love having Jermain here,” Bezbatchenko stated. “He has symptoms to a sports hernia and is rehabbing. In the next couple of weeks we will see if he needs surgery.”
Toronto sits fourth in MLS’s Eastern Conference with a 9-9-6 record with 10 games left in the season, and is tied with New England and Columbus on 33 points. The top five clubs qualify for the playoffs. New York (31 points), Philadelphia (30) and Chicago (29) have all made up ground on TFC recently, although the Reds still have games in hand on all the teams chasing them.
For a limited time get Sportsnet Magazine’s digital edition free for 60 days. Visit Appstore/RogersMagazines to see what you’re missing out on.
