Bet Victor currently values Rangers FC as the heavy favourites to land AFC Bournemouth’s Jermain Defoe. The veteran striker is wanted by a number of clubs including Blackburn Rovers, Sheffield Wednesday and Wigan Athletic but Steven Gerrard’s Rangers has the best odds at 3/1. His contract with the Cherries is set to run for another season but Eddie Howe might be pulled into a sale if interests continue to rise over the 35-year-old.
Even at this age, Defoe is a prolific goalscorer who managed to grab 4 goals and 4 assists from his 26 appearances for Bournemouth last term, most of them as a substitute. He grabbed an astonishing 37 goals during his time with Sunderland and played a key role in saving them from relegation in the 2015/16 season.
The 57-cap England international might not be the pacey presence he once was in the opposition box but he more than makes up for it with his scoring prowess and craftiness with the ball. The former Tottenham Hotspur striker has racked up 163 goals in total in close to 500 appearances in the Premier League.
However, as competition starts to build in the English top-flight, he is slowly learning that clubs might not have much use for him other than as a second-string option. Howe alone has trouble rotating him into the starting lineup when there are younger options like Joshua King and Callum Wilson (Benik Afobe as well who has now been traded off to Stoke City via Wolves).
Being the top professional that he is, Defoe still clearly wants to be in the spotlight and Rangers seem like the perfect destination to play out the rest of his career. His compatriot and former England teammate, Gerrard has taken charge of the Ibrox outfit and have already set off a number of changes in the club’s operations.
Other than announcing 7 new signings, he is constantly scouring the transfer market for more squad improvements each day. With Umar Sadiq also coming in from AS Roma, Defoe’s arrival could perfectly seal off the Rangers attacking lineup ahead of the 2018/19 campaign.
The Light Blues are aiming for the league title and other domestic honours next term but are faced with a monumental task of overcoming their bitter rivals.
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Bringing in experienced names like Defoe could finally place them in the similar talent pool as Celtic.
