Will Jermain Defoe become an England regular?

England’s 4-0 victory over Bulgaria in the Euro 2012 qualifier may have been slightly predictable but for hat-trick hero Jermain Defoe the night could be a turning point in his international career.

The Tottenham striker is a prolific goal scorer but has yet to nail down a regular place for the Three Lions.

4-4-2

England boss Fabio Capello changed back to his favoured 4-4-2 for the game and Defoe benefited from that last night.

Wayne Rooney played slightly deeper in a position which suits him better than the lone striker role and he was instrumental in a few of the England goals. Rooney linked up superbly with the diminutive striker.

Confused

I have always been confused by how Defoe continuously gets overlooked for a place in the starting eleven. Past England bosses seem to have thought of Defoe as more of an impact player off the bench then a regular starter.

However in recent seasons he has matured and his play now reflects that maturity. He is now a more intelligent player than he was at 21. At 27 he is the prime of a striker’s life and I hope he keeps his place in the starting eleven. He certainly deserves his chance.

Opposition

Granted Bulgaria were poor at the back last night but Defoe still had to finish the chances he was provided with and he did. I was commenting to a friend of mine while watching the game that he is a goal poacher or what we used to call a goal hanger in days gone by!

He is also a natural instinctive finisher. He has good composure when put through one-on-one and he took his goals last night really well. The question now is can he produce against the world’s top nations when asked. Well that’s a question that will be asked of the whole team.

Injured

Defoe did particularly well last night considering he put off a groin injury operation to play in the game. He was set to undergo an operation on a long-standing groin problem and would have missed the game if he would have had the surgery.

Defoe told Sky Sports: “I’m glad I didn’t have it now! It’s been a little bit sore to be honest, but I’ve done a lot of work in the gym – a lot of core work – to try to improve it and I didn’t get a reaction.”

Record

Defoe has now scored 15 goals in 44 appearances for England. That’s not a bad record considering a lot of his appearances have come from the substitute bench. I’m sure he would have had a better record if he would have started more games.

Chance

I believe Fabio Capello now needs to give the little striker a run in the team and maybe he can prove to the Italian that he has what it takes to be a first choice selection.

He also has an attribute that England lacked during the World Cup, pace. Defoe could be a valuable asset to the England squad in the future and hopefully he will get a chance to impress at a major competition.

Should Jermain Defoe be a regular starter for England?