A plethora of League One teams are chasing the signature of former England international striker Jermain Defoe, according to Sky Sports reporter Keith Downie.

Having departed his player-coach role at Scottish Premiership champions Rangers last week after three years with the Gers, Defoe is keen to carry on playing football and has a number of clubs on his case.

Defoe's former club Sunderland are interested in a reunion with the 39-year-old, having played for the Black Cats for two-and-a-half years between 2015 and 2017 and the veteran has admitted himself that there is interest from the Wearsiders.

However some of their third tier rivals are making it known to Defoe that they are keen on his services, including Ipswich Town, Oxford United and Charlton Athletic.

The Addicks are a team that Defoe spent two years at as a youth player before he switched to West Ham United and 21 years later, Johnnie Jackson is making a play to reunite with an individual he played with whilst at Tottenham Hotspur.

The Verdict

Even though he's nearing 40, Defoe would surely be a coup for any League One club.

He was still firing in double figures in terms of goals for Rangers in the 2019-20 season and that was only a year-and-a-half ago - there's not been much game-time for him recently but he will still possess his sharp-shooting instincts.

The Sunderland switch would be the one that perhaps is closest to Defoe's heart and if it's about that over money at this stage of his career then it seems like the obvious move.

But if it does come down to finances then it could be a real battle for his signature and one that could potentially rumble on for a few weeks.