Jermain Defoe said farewell to Tottenham Hotspur and to the Barclays Premier League this week as he heads off to play for Toronto FC in the MLS and begin a new chapter to his stellar career. Looking back on his 13 years in the Barclays Premier League the England striker talked exclusively to premierleague.com about his success on the pitch and off it with various good causes.
Defoe made his Barclays Premier League debut as an 18-year-old on 19 May 2001, coming on as a substitute for West Ham United away to Middlesbrough.
"I was at Bournemouth on loan having made my debut in the cup for West Ham and at Bournemouth I had scored a number of goals so I was looking forward to coming back to West Ham and playing that in the Premier League," he says. "It was like a dream come true to come on in the Premier League at such a young age for a good club. It was a special day."
