Defoe Nearing QPR, Likely to Leave Unfulfilled Dreams Behind in Toronto

There was hardly a more hopeful day in the history of Toronto FC than last March 15, when Jermain Defoe scored a seven-minute brace to help the Canadian side to a 2-1 victory over Seattle.

Perhaps the club's 2007 debut in Major League Soccer was a slightly more optimistic occasion. After all, the frustration of seven abysmal campaigns in the North American top flight had yet to inflict their culture of disappointment on the club's eager fan-base.

Which is why Defoe's acquisition from Tottenham Hotspur in January 2014 was such a "Bloody Big Deal," as Toronto's media department spun the transaction.

The England international's unveiling, which coincided with that of former Roma midfielder Michael Bradley, was greeted with predictable delight from the throng of supporters who welcomed the striker at Real Sports Bar & Grill in Maple Leaf Square, and when he scored twice on his debut, it looked as though the troubled club had finally turned a corner on its long and winding journey to respectability.

But that's about as good as it got, for both Toronto and their star player.

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Although Defoe bagged two more braces before mid-summer, his July 16 penalty against Vancouver proved to be his final goal in the red shirt.

A groin injury limited him to just three more appearances over the course of the season, and by the end of August, his future in Canada's biggest city was already a topic of discussion.

The Canadian Press, as per the National Post, revealed the then-31-year-old to be unhappy with "the direction of the club," and the admission drew a cryptic response from general manager Tim Bezbatchenko, who said he'd be "speaking with him" before making a decision.

On August 31, The Guardian linked Defoe with a £6.6 million move to Queens Park Rangers—a likelihood the forward hardly downplayed late last month when he told reporters he felt he had been treated "a bit harsh" by some of the club's fans, according to the Canadian Press, via the Toronto Star:

"I think if you do want someone to stay at a football club, at least support them," he said. "At least show them that you want them to be here."

Many Toronto fans would counter that Defoe himself hasn't wanted to be at the MLS outfit since shortly after his arrival. There's little to back up their cynicism, but it's an understandable reaction from a group that, because of past experience, has developed something of a persecution complex.

Tim Leiweke, however, remains bullish about the Defoe experiment, however it turns out.

Earlier this week, following the London Evening Standard's claim that the player is set to agree a three-year deal worth £90,000 per week at QPR, the CEO of Toronto FC's ownership group told The Canadian Press, as per the Toronto Star, that the situation would "end well" for the club.

"Jermain needs to decide if he wants to be here," he said. "If he does, then I think he's one of the great strikers in MLS. If he does not, then that situation is ours to ultimately decide, not his, because we own his contract. We're not going to give him away. And so we're in a good spot."

Leiweke went on to say that, in the event Defoe was sold, Toronto already had a fallback option in place regarding the vacated Designated Player slot.

Not that his admission will be welcomed with anything near the level of hopefulness that marked Defoe's two-goal performance at CenturyLink Field nearly eight months ago. Not by the club and its fans, anyway.

Defoe, on the other hand, could be set to earn career-high wages at Loftus Road while being reunited with Harry Redknapp—his manager in previous stints at Tottenham and Portsmouth.

Redknapp has already conceded interest in the striker and on Thursday admitted to The Guardian that he had, in fact, attempted to sign him in the summer.

"I'm a big fan of Jermain's," he said. "He's a goalscorer and a player you'd obviously like at your club if possible."

No doubt Defoe would also like to turn a switch back to the Premier League into an England recall. He was devastated at being left off the Three Lions' 2014 World Cup squad and in May told the Toronto Star it was an omission he would never "be at peace with."

Perhaps his fallout with Toronto and Major League Soccer began in that moment.

But whatever the case, whatever happens between now and the January transfer window, Defoe's 2014 campaign will not only leave more questions than answers but enough displeasure and unfulfilled dreams to go around as well.