JERMAIN DEFOE has refused to call time on his international career despite being omitted from Roy Hodgson’s provisional England squad for this summer’s European Championships.

Defoe failed to make Hodgson’s 26-man selection, with the England boss instead selecting Marcus Rashford even though the Manchester United youngster ended the season with 11 fewer Premier League goals than his Sunderland-based rival.

Defoe won the most recent of his 55 international caps in November 2013, and has not represented his country since briefly leaving England to play for Canadian side Toronto FC in the MLS.

Given that he will turn 34 in October, it is hard to imagine him being recalled in the future, but he is adamant he will not be formally announcing his retirement from the international game.

“I’ve never retired, and I’ll never turn my back on England because I still believe I can score goals at that level,” said Defoe. “That’s what’s kept me going, and one of the reasons I came back from the MLS.

“I feel like I’ve done everything I could do. I’m delighted that Sunderland stayed up and, on a personal note, I’m delighted with the amount of goals that I’ve scored. That’s all I could do, really.”

Defoe admits he did not regard a place at the Euros as a realistic possibility when he agreed to join Sunderland 16 months ago, but his performances this season led many to tout him as a viable contender despite competition from the likes of Wayne Rooney, Harry Kane, Jamie Vardy and Daniel Sturridge.

“I’ve not been involved with England for quite a while, and I’ve always thought that getting into an England squad before a tournament is based on merit,” said Defoe, in an interview with Sky Sports. “As a forward, if you score goals, then you’ve got a chance of going.

“When you see things in the papers and people start talking about it – just mentioning my name about maybe getting into the squad – then I started thinking about it. So obviously when you’re not in the squad, it’s a disappointment.”