Spurs head-coach wants England striker to stay put despite Toronto interest.
Andre Villas-Boas wants Jermain Defoe to see out the remainder of his contract at Tottenham.
Defoe, 30, has been linked with a surprise move to MLS outfit FC Toronto after the Canadians’ boss Ryan Nelsen admitted his admiration for his former teammate.
The England striker has started just one Premier League match this season – the embarrassing 3-0 home defeat to West Ham – with Villas-Boas favouring summer signing Roberto Soldado as a lone striker.
But Defoe has been on lethal form in the Europa League and League Cup, bagging eight goals in six starts this term.
With the World Cup looming, the former Portsmouth man has admitted he needs to be playing regular first team football in order to secure a spot on the plane to Brazil but Villas-Boas has ruled out selling Defoe in January.
“We want the player to stay on and hold on to those last years of his contract, ” said the Tottenham manager.
Defoe is currently tied with Martin Chivers on 22 continental goals for Spurs but another against Sheriff of Moldova on Thursday night would see the diminutive forward break Chivers’ record.
“The player at the moment is our top goal scorer and he is chasing the European record for the club as well which is important for his individual motivation,” finished Villas-Boas.
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