Jermain Defoe has revealed how he was so surprised by his shock England recall that he initially ignored Gareth Southgate’s attempts to contact him.
Defoe is back in the England squad for the first time since 2013 as Southgate prepares for the friendly in Germany and the World Cup qualifier against Lithuania.
The 34-year-old striker last played for England 1,217 days ago but has been in excellent form for Sunderland this season despite his club being rooted to the bottom of the Premier League.
Yet, despite his 14 Premier League goals this season, Defoe revealed the last person he expected to hear from was Southgate.