Jermain Defoe has admitted he thought his England career was over until he received a phone call from Gareth Southgate.
The 34-year-old Sunderland striker has been called into the squad for the games against Germany and Lithuania later this month, with injuries to Wayne Rooney, Daniel Sturridge and Harry Kane having left Southgate light on numbers.
Defoe won the last of his 55 senior caps against Chile in November 2013 and with his career approaching its conclusion, he feared he would never wear the three lions on his chest again despite his enduring potency at club level.