Jermain Defoe should have been happy. He had just scored a match-winning double on his debut for Toronto FC.

The MLS franchise had been so fixated on signing him that basketball star LeBron James and rapper Drake were employed as part of the charm offensive.

But even then, on that March afternoon last year in Seattle, it was evident that all was not well with Defoe, at least to those who were in the post-match locker-room at Century Link Field.

Jermain Defoe's time at Toronto was hampered by injury, ruling him out of 12 of their final 18 games

Defoe has been offered an escape route from Canada with Sunderland

Defoe (right) beats a tackle from Djimi Traore (left) to score on his Toronto FC debut against Seattle Sounders

Defoe was mobbed by reporters in the locker room after his first game for the club

JERMAIN DEFOE'S DEBUT JOY Defoe has scored on his debut for all his clubs: Sep 2000 Walsall 0-1 West Ham League Cup Oct 2000 Stoke 2-1 Bournemouth Division 2 Feb 2004 Tottenham 4-3 Portsmouth PL Feb 2008 Portsmouth 1-1 Chelsea PL Mar 2014 Seattle Sounders 1-2 Toronto MLS Can Defoe continue his scoring spree when he takes on former club Tottenham on Saturday? Advertisement

Within 10 minutes of full-time, nearly 50 reporters had invaded the changing quarters, all demanding his time and attention.

Defoe’s face, it is said, told its own story. ‘He had a look of, “What the hell is going on here?”,’ a source close to the club told Sportsmail.

‘Even then we thought he wasn’t happy and had not settled. But looking back, that game was the highlight of his time here and probably of the franchise’s history.’

Defoe had been sold a vision of Toronto by Tim Leiweke, the president of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE) — the company which owns the football team and the man who became so obsessed with bringing the England international to Canada that a deal which would ultimately cost $50million was sanctioned.

Rapper Drake and NBA star LeBron James were tasked with wooing Defoe's mum, Sandra

Defoe poses with his mum at his 23rd birthday in London back in 2005

James was asked by Leiweke, when the NBA star was playing in Toronto, to woo Defoe’s mum Sandra as she attended a basketball game as a courtside guest of the club in November 2013. Drake, meanwhile, sent flowers to her hotel — the Ritz, no less — and later telephoned Defoe. It worked.

In January, Defoe was unveiled as the poster-boy for the franchise. MLSE made sure his face was on every prominent billboard across town. What they failed to mention was that Toronto FC are the fourth, possibly fifth, most significant sports team in the city.

‘We don’t think he was prepared for that,’ added the source. ‘He was sold this idea that he was going to be like a rock star. But I don’t think he realised how small the club is.

‘In a city of nearly three-million people, there is a cult-like group of about 40,000 who care about Toronto FC and about 20,000 go to matches. The majority are ice-hockey fans. We think Jermain was brutally homesick from the start. After a few months he was pushing for a move back to England. In the end it was inevitable and everyone is relieved it’s finally all over.’

Defoe was the star attraction for Toronto following his big-money move to Canada

Defoe was unveiled alongside US international Michael Bradley in January 2014

Although the relationship was on rocky ground from the start, he did score 11 times in the first 16 games of the campaign.

But amid that scoring streak came his omission from Roy Hodgson’s England World Cup squad. Defoe was convinced he would be in Brazil and it is thought that snub marked the beginning of the end of his time in the MLS.

He scored his last goal for Toronto in a 1-1 draw at home to Vancouver Whitecaps on July 16 before injuries — some disputed by the club and supporters — saw him miss 12 of the final 18 matches.

He was hurt when his commitment was questioned. ‘There are a few fans who have said certain things and I’m like, “Well, that’s a bit harsh”,’ he said in October.

Defoe received stick from some supporters, who questioned some of his injury problems

‘If you want someone to stay at a football club, at least support them. At least show them that you want them to be here.’

Two months earlier, head coach Ryan Nelsen — Defoe’s former Spurs team-mate — had been sacked. Defoe’s own exit plan was in place and he came close to a move back to the Premier League in the summer.

He eventually returned to the UK in November and has spent time training at St George’s Park and in France, as well as with Spurs’ development squad. The 32-year-old never had any intention of returning to the MLS and will today be confirmed as a Sunderland player, with American striker Jozy Altidore set to go in the other direction.

Gus Poyet has given Defoe a way out from his sorry spell with Toronto

The North East, meanwhile, is also home to John Carver, the former Toronto FC boss now in caretaker charge of Newcastle. And he is surprised that Defoe quit after just one season.

‘I can’t believe he hasn’t settled in Toronto because it is a fantastic party city. I loved it,’ he said.

‘I know he did extremely well on the pitch but I also know he had a problem settling. But he could have been the big star of the MLS. If he had stayed fit, he might have got Toronto into the play-offs. Sunderland have got a good deal.’

Crystal Palace boss Alan Pardew agrees. ‘We tried to get Defoe,’ he revealed. ‘But we were probably a bit late in the loop. He’ll do well for Sunderland. He’s a goalscorer.’