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Jermaine Defoe’s demotion to England standby squad could be a boon for Toronto FC

Toronto FC striker Jermaine Defoe may be staying in Canada this summer, which could be an unexpected boost for the team. Defoe has long been a key part of the England squad and had been on all but two of current manager Roy Hodgson's matchday lineups, but while he was named to England's 30-man provisional World Cup roster, he wasn't included in their main 23-man roster. That news is unfortunate for Defoe and could perhaps even spell the end of his international career, but it could work out well for Toronto FC, which will definitely be losing stars Michael Bradley and Julio Cesar to the American and Brazilian teams respectively. Having a striker of Defoe's calibre available for club duty during the World Cup is an unusual occurrence, and one that could work out very well for TFC.

Defoe's selection to only the standby squad is a little surprising, considering his 55 national appearances and 19 goals for England. Plus, the 31-year-old striker is still in good form; he has three goals in four MLS games this season. The English team historically hasn't taken many players from other leagues, though, with Opta Sports reporting that only four of the last 114 players chosen for England's last five World Cup squads came from non-English leagues. (Canadian-born midfielder Owen Hargreaves was twice picked while playing for Germany's Bayern Munich, while Fraser Forster was capped while playing for Scotland's Glasgow Celtic and David Beckham was selected from MLS' Los Angeles Galaxy.) That's not necessarily discrimination, as most of the top English players play in the Premier League, but it does mean that England managers aren't necessarily thinking about overseas players and leagues. It's also not as easy for them to scout a player like Defoe as someone who plays closer to home. Moreover, while MLS' quality of play has improved substantially over the years, it's still not generally thought to be at a level with the Premier League, and that means Defoe's impressive MLS showings thus far may be devalued in Hodgson's mind thanks to them not coming against Premier League competition.

That could prove to be a great break for TFC, though. The team's already going to be down two stars in Bradley and Julio Cesar, so having Defoe still around could provide them with some firepower. It's notable that plenty of other MLS teams are going to be shorthanded thanks to the World Cup, so retaining a striker like Defoe could give TFC a significant edge in league play. However, it's not for sure that they'll be able to keep him; if there's an injury to one of the four strikers on England's 23-man roster (Wayne Rooney, Daniel Sturridge, Danny Welbeck and Rickie Lambert), Defoe or West Ham's Andy Carroll would be the next man up. Still, Defoe may be hoping for another chance to wear the England jersey, but TFC will probably be just fine with keeping him around.