Defoe - Injury was a blessing

29 September 2009 15:47
Tottenham striker Jermaine Defoe believes his three-month injury absence helped him get back to his best. Defoe, 26, has been in excellent form throughout the early part of the season, scoring five goals in seven Premier League starts. And the England striker claims his superb start is largely due to a significant spell on the sidelines with a broken foot. Defoe's stunning return has seen him maintain a strong partnership with Robbie Keane at Spurs in favour of former Pompey team-mate Peter Crouch, while at the same time improving his standing in Fabio Capello's England squad. Delighted with his progress, Defoe believes his enforced absence has helped him recapture his form of old. "I look back now on my broken metatarsal and actually think it was one of the best things that could have happened," he told the club's official magazine. "It meant I missed 11 weeks at the start of this year, and at the time it was bad news given that we were still in the middle of a relegation battle, but in the long term that rest I had was invaluable." Groove Defoe's injury brought about a lengthy spell on the sidelines, which he admits came as quite a shock after a relatively injury-free career before that. He added: "Over the years I've always been lucky with injuries, which means I've been used to playing pretty consistently throughout the season. "Summer breaks these days are often no more than a few weeks, so I've often come straight back into the groove when the new campaign starts without ever having an extended break before pre-season. "I did make it back towards the end of last season but it wasn't more than a month or so before the summer break came along, so then I had another long period of winding down. "During the summer I started feeling that, for the first time since the start of my career, I was really getting back to being totally fresh and in perfect physical health - it was incredible. "I feel that extra month or so has made all the difference and I think that's the reason I'm now producing the best form of my life."

Source: SKY_Sports