Struggling Toronto striker Jermain Defoe said he'll likely have surgery on a groin injury that kept him out of 14 games this season, according to reports.
"I remember the game against New York [Oct. 11], I just really struggled in the second half," he told MLSsoccer.com. "I wasn't really Jermain Defoe; I couldn't really turn sharp or hit any shots. I tried to adapt my game just to be on the pitch and help the team but in the end not really helping myself because I didn't perform the way I normally do."
He is scheduled to see a specialist in Germany, the report said.
"It's something I need fixing because it's stopping me from what I really want to do in games," Defoe said. "I tried everything. I tried resting. I got treatment in London. ... The New York game, in the second half, I was just in pain."
Defoe, 31, left Tottenham earlier this year but Tim Leiweke -- the president and CEO of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, which owns Toronto FC -- hinted last month that the striker is eager to make a swift return to the Premier League.
The English forward, who played most of last year's Premier League season with Tottenham before making the switch to Toronto, said his comments about returning to England were misinterpreted.
"You read things, and obviously social media is powerful, and I see things from the fans," he said. "I try not to read it, but I'm only human. But obviously I want to read things, and you want people to like you, you want the fans to realize that you love playing for the club and you love football.
"Sometimes I read it and I think to myself, 'Are they talking about me? They must be getting the wrong person,'" he said. "I suppose it's part and parcel of playing football, and I'll take it on the chin. I'm professional, and as long as I know in my heart is that I'm committed then I suppose the rest doesn't really bother me."
Defoe said he expects to discuss his future on Tuesday with Toronto head coach Greg Vanney and club general manager Tim Bezbatchenko.
"In football, I've never come out and said publicly that I want to leave a football club," Defoe said. "In the end of the day, I don't know what the future holds, but I will say that I was desperate to get into the playoffs and it's something that I would love to experience."
Vanney said he would wait until he spoke with Defoe to make a decision.
"What I'm not sure is, now that he's spent a year in this league, what are his true feelings about this league and this decision he's made," Vanney told MLSSoccer.com. "Does he want to really see this out, and is this really where he wants to push his career? These are all conversations that we're going to have once this season closes.
"We would like to have him back if he's ready to play and his mind is in the right place and believes in the project."