Members of CONEL joined the footballer as he launched a new BBC Radio 5 Live podcast, reports Olivia Opara

Former Tottenham Hotspur and England striker Jermain Defoe gave a talk to local college students ahead of the launch of a new BBC podcast.

Defoe visited Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to speak to pupils from the College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London (CONEL) on Friday, 3rd February. The creative media production and music diploma students listened to him discuss his upcoming podcast ‘Outside The Box’ for BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds.

This was part of a podcast and social media masterclass run by the BBC Young Reporter Scheme wherein the students were taught the process of making a podcast and given advice on their productions. James Peacock, managing director of production company Folding Pocket, which made Outside The Box, and junior producer Joseph Sam were also in attendance.

BBC sport presenter Liam Loftus and BBC producer Olivia Portas also shared their tips on filming and creating social media posts and reels.

The podcast follows Defoe’s journey after retiring from playing professionally last year as the Premier League’s ninth-highest ever goalscorer and his ambitions to become a football manager.

During his time with Spurs, Defoe made 363 appearances and scored 143 goals and won 57 senior caps for England – scoring 20 goals.

Defoe said: “Management was on my mind towards the end of my career. You get to that stage where you start to think realistically about how long am I going to play for and what will I do next?”

The ex-striker shared his story of being a professional footballer with the students, retiring and returning to Tottenham as a club ambassador and academy coach last summer.

Creative media production student Teti Purwanti said: “I’m a Spurs fan and it was amazing to meet Jermain Defoe in person and hear about his new podcast and career.

“I’ve gained so much knowledge about how to create podcasts and it’s really inspired me.

The students were given a tour of Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, courtesy of the Tottenham Hotspur Foundation. They had the chance to see the club’s trophies, visit the players’ dressing rooms and the press room, walk up the tunnel, stand pitch side and sit in the dugout.

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