The ball appears firmly in the court of Rangers striker Jermain Defoe as he muses over his future and a poignant tweet resurfaces proving he came, he saw and he conquered in Glasgow.
The veteran striker showed he’s still got it to come off the bench in the 4-1 Old Firm demolition of Celtic and roll the ball past Scott Bain after sitting Stephen Welsh on his backside.
Despite approaching his 39th birthday, the legendary Premier League forward looked sharp, strong and more than capable of finding the back of the net.
Attention has now turned to Defoe’s future with the ex-Spurs striker’s current deal set to expire in the summer and uncertainty regarding game-time Ibrox.
With the likes of Alfredo Morelos, Kemar Roofe and Cedric Itten competing for the sole striking berth, Jermain has been limited to 19 appearances this season.
Of those games, only four have been starts but the prolific forward has still managed six goals for the club in 589 minutes, meaning Defoe still averages a goal every 98 minutes this season.
But with the likes of Fashion Sakala coming into the club there remain doubts over game-time next season but Rangers boss Steven Gerrard has revealed the club are in talks with the forward.
“It goes without saying that Jermain Defoe is someone I have the ultimate respect and admiration for,” said Gerrard [Sky Sports].
“He’s been a wonderful player. He’s had a wonderful career. To get him up here in the first place was something I was keen to do, because I knew he would help the group in the way he goes about his business. He’s a top professional.
“We’re in talks with Jermain at the moment about what’s next for Jermain. But we want to be really respectful, we want to give him the time to make his own decisions.
“I think he’s at a stage in his life where we’ll listen to Jermain and see what he wants to do moving forward.
“We’ll go from there. I don’t think it’s right for me to divulge right now what’s been said from my point of view and from his. But we’ll certainly respect Jermain in terms of his own decisions moving forward.”
These are relatively revealing comments from Gerrard; Defoe is a figure of massive respect inside and outside of Ibrox and the club clearly appreciate his daily contribution to the cause.
The striker’s rumoured wages of £35k appear outlandish and it’s difficult to verify those claims but you imagine any new deal would match his reduced playing time.
It appears that from a Rangers point of view – going by the transfer business and depth of the squad – that reduced appearances and a background role appear the reality of another season in Glasgow.
But what’s clear from the comments is that the ball is firmly in Jermain’s court.
If this legendary forward – one of the Premier League’s greatest ever goalscorers (162 goals make him the competition’s 9th highest scorer) – wants to prolong his career then playing games is huge.
The likes of League One Sunderland, one of England’s sleeping giants and a former Defoe side, have been linked with a return for the striker who’d surely get more minutes at the Stadium of Light.
According to Sky Sports, much of this depends on the success of Lee Johnson’s side in the League One playoffs.
But what’s clear is that there are options for Defoe and if it is time to move on from Ibrox then he’ll do so with the blessing of an adoring Rangers support who very much value his presence at the club.
The striker has never hidden his passion for Rangers and his pride to turn out for the club in the twilight of his career, something symbolised by that emotional response to his Old Firm goal.
This week, a tweet from when Defoe first signed for Rangers resurfaced as he set the challenge to go and “bring that trophy home” alongside former England teammate Steven Gerrard.
In the two and a bit years he’s been at Ibrox, this wonderful footballer and sublime professional has done just that and if pastures new beckon, we’ll never forget it.
Rangers fans were absolutely delighted to see the striker score against Celtic at the weekend as they laid tribute to one of the team’s finest ambassadors with a tweet or two of their own.
