Friday 17 March 2017 16:44, UK
David Moyes is hoping Jermain Defoe's return to the England squad will give relegation-threatened Sunderland a massive boost in their battle to avoid the drop.
The 34-year-old was called up by Gareth Southgate on Thursday ahead of internationals against Germany and Lithuania following another excellent season at the Stadium of Light.
Defoe has netted 14 of Sunderland's 24 Premier League goals this season, although the Black Cats are bottom of the table and six points from safety with 11 matches remaining.
Speaking ahead of Saturday's home clash with Burnley, Moyes said of Defoe's England recall: "I think it's a boost to Jermain and hopefully it gives the whole club a lift because we need his goals and we need more goals.
"It's less and less likely that older players get call-ups when they've been out of the team for a while.
"You get players like Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney who play right through to their mid-thirties, but when you've been out of the squad, it shows your professionalism in never giving up on it."
More sobering for the Scot was the disappointing news that Jan Kirchhoff's recovery from injury has suffered a setback.
The influential German midfielder has not played for Sunderland since mid-December due to hamstring and knee injuries, and suffered a reaction during a recent under-23 match.
Moyes added: "Jan has unfortunately had a recurrence of his knee problem and it looks like it is going to keep him out for a minimum of four weeks.
"I don't think there is any damage but it is going to take longer than we thought to heal."
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