8. Lights, Camera, Action

Jermain Defoe: Outside The Box

In episode eight of Outside the Box, Jermain heads to Media City in Salford to work as a pundit on Match of the Day 2. It's a post-playing world that has always interested him, and for a football obsessive like Jermain the idea of watching and talking about games is extremely appealing.

He speaks to the show's editor Steve Houghton about what's required, and then reminisces about growing up watching a programme he's about to appear on. Smoothing his path on this night will be his fellow pundit and former Tottenham and England teammate, Jermain Jenas who discusses how difficult he found life after hanging up his boots, how he got into punditry, and how he's developed his skills to try and best convey his opinions to the watching public.

Before long the show is underway and Jermain is offering opinions on the Sunday fixture list including Fulham against Manchester United, and digging into a well-rounded performance from a fellow striker: Aston Villa's Danny Ings. At the end of the show, Jermain heads back to London and readies himself for a day with the U-18's at the Spurs Academy.

Although management remains at the forefront of Jermain’s mind, his trip to Manchester has made him wonder how the media could work with him - and against him - if and when he takes over at a football club. So he brings together two of the most prominent journalists in the business to get their thoughts on the relationship between the press and managers: the Chief Football Writer of The Times, Henry Winter, and his counterpart at The Daily and Sunday Telegraph, Jason Burt.

The pair discuss many of the issues Jermain will come face to face with when he makes the jump from academy coach to first team manager.