Football
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Sunderland set to unveil Jermain Defoe on Friday

Jermain Defoe is expected to become a Sunderland player on Friday after the final details of his transfer were tied up.

However, the Black Cats are waiting for Jozy Altidore's proposed swap-move to Toronto to be processed before making an announcement.

Press Association reported that Defoe's end of the deal is in place, but Altidore only flew to Canada on Thursday to push through his return to the MLS with Toronto. Sources told ESPN FC that Altidore would be introduced on Friday, and Toronto FC general manager Tim Bezbatchenko confirmed later on Thursday that "We're confident that process will be done in the next 24 hours."

Barring any late hitches, PA reported that sources on Wearside remain hopeful that the 32-year-old Defoe could make his debut against former club Tottenham at White Hart Lane on Saturday.

Sunderland head coach Gus Poyet will hope Defoe can bring much-needed goals to his team after maintaining his impressive scoring record at Toronto, but current caretaker Newcastle boss John Carver admitted his surprise that the frontman had not settled at the club he managed earlier in his career.

"I can't believe he hasn't settled in Toronto because, let me tell you, Toronto is a fantastic party city! It's a fantastic place, so I was surprised," Carver said. "I think it's a good signing for them. I know that when he went to Toronto, he did extremely well, but he had one or two injury problems, so he didn't play as much as he should have done. I know he did have a problem settling there, as one or two people told me.

"He could have been the big star of the MLS in the eyes of the fans in Toronto. He got something like 11 goals in 19 games. If he had stayed fit, he may have got them into the playoffs. Their form fell away when he got injured.

"There are some good players going out there now and it's a tough league. But he wanted to come back to England and feels like he's got something to offer, and he's gone to our rivals."

Defoe returns to the Premier League after just 11 months in Canada despite signing a four-year deal, while Altidore is just 18 months into a similar length contract, but has struggled to hit the heights since his 6.5 million-pound arrival at the Stadium of Light from Dutch club AZ Alkmaar during the summer of 2013.

New Crystal Palce boss Alan Pardew also admitted that he had been interested in signing Defoe. The former Newcastle manager grudgingly admitted Defoe's goal scoring prowess could ease Sunderland out of the Premier League relegation battle.

"I think it's a good move for Sunderland to have secured Jermain, I think he's a goal scorer and Gus [Poyet] will be the first to tell you they need more goals," said Pardew. "So it's a good signing for them.

"We tried to get Defoe, but probably a bit late in the loop on that one. I wouldn't say we were that close, no. It never really got to the stage where I got to speak to Jermain, so I would say we were not that close."

The Eagles' new manager, however, warned that Defoe must first prove he is capable of playing week on week to fulfil his Sunderland brief.

"He's still got to step in, I don't know the last time Jermain had a run of three or four Premier League games," said Pardew. "He'll be asked to start every week at Sunderland, so I think he's going to have to grasp it quickly.

"But he's a goal scorer, he opens up the goal with both feet and gets goals that (make) you question your back four, he makes you think 'how did he get that?' But that's his ability, you don't really know which side he's going to go, and he makes it difficult to stop him scoring goals.

"I think he'll do well for them, I think it's a good signing. But it's like anything, he'll need a goal early, all strikers need that for his confidence."

Information from Press Association was used in this report.

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