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Rangers completing a permanent deal for this in-form English star is an absolute no-brainer – Gerrard must do this

Why Rangers should strike a permanent deal for Jermain Defoe

According to the Daily Record, veteran striker Jermain Defoe wants to turn his loan spell at Rangers into a permanent move when his contract with Bournemouth runs out next summer. 

Defoe, who turns 37 today, has revealed that he has held talks with manager Steven Gerrard over making his stay at Ibrox permanent at the end of the ongoing campaign, with the veteran issuing a come-and-get-me plea to the Old Firm giants. (h/t Daily Record)

The same report also claims that Defoe has settled down very well at Rangers following his temporary switch north of the border from the English south coast back in January 2019 and his prolific form in front of goal has made him a firm fan favourite at Ibrox. 

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Defoe made only 4 substitute appearances in the Premier League for Bournemouth in the first half of the previous campaign before rediscovering his goalscoring mojo at Rangers, where he bagged an impressive 8 goals in 20 outings in the second half of the 2018-19 season. 

The former England international wasn’t able to guide the Gers to the domestic title last season, as Celtic ran away with the bragging rights for the eighth year running, but Defoe has put that disappointment behind him to come out all guns blazing this term.

Despite largely playing second-fiddle to first-choice No.9 Alfredo Morelos, the 37-year-old has already racked up an eye-watering tally of 12 goals in 14 appearances across all competitions for the Gers, including 9 in 7 Scottish Premiership games. 

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Defoe netted a hat-trick in the 6-1 rout of Hibernian early in August before repeating a similar feat yesterday to guide Steven Gerrard’s side to an emphatic 5-0 victory over Hamilton Academical as Rangers leapfrogged archrivals Celtic, who dropped down to second in the standings after a shock 2-0 defeat at the hands of Livingston. 

To put things into perspective, Defoe has defied his advancing years to rack up some impressive numbers for Rangers since his move to Ibrox back in January and if his current form is anything to go by, it should be an absolute no-brainer for the Gers to offer him permanent terms next summer. 

Despite being in the twilight of his career, Defoe has competed well with first-choice Alfredo Morelos when it comes to finding the net on a regular basis.

The Colombian continues be linked with a move elsewhere and Rangers look destined to lose their star man in the near future, albeit a potential sale is likely to land them millions of pounds in the market. 

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With Kyle Lafferty now out of the frame, Rangers have only two top-quality out-and-out strikers in their senior ranks and while Morelos’ departure is very much an inevitability, the Gers should not hesitate to extend Defoe’s stay at the club. 

Given his advancing years, eyebrows had been raised when Rangers brought him in as a marquee signing last season but Defoe has taken very well to the Scottish game, thus silencing his critics in the process. 

Defoe’s blistering run of form this term, which has already yielded 12 goals in 14 games, is indicative of the fact that the 37-year-old is still going strong.

The former Spurs and West Ham star has clearly shown that he is still more than capable of gobbling up goals for fun in the Scottish surroundings and his exploits up top could potentially be a make-or-break factor for the Gers this term as they look to oust Celtic from the domestic throne.

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A former 57-cap England international and a veteran of over 650 career appearances in club football, Jermain Defoe is very much a living legend and he boasts of experience that even millions of pounds in the market would fail to buy. 

Verdict

Having played with Defoe back in his days as an England international, Gerrard is likely to be well aware of of the pedigree of his former teammate and a permanent move would definitely make a lot of sense for all parties involved.

With that in mind, Rangers should respond to Defoe’s plea and move quickly to sign him up on a Bosman transfer next summer.