in january 2017, with sunderland lying in the relegation zone, defoe was linked with a return to former club west ham united. however, sunderland rejected a bid in the region of £6 million, with manager david moyes describing defoe as "priceless". on 4 february 2017, defoe scored twice in first half stoppage time in a 4–0 away victory at crystal palace to move on to 14 league goals for the season.