Theo Bair and the Motherwell words of wisdom that inspired him to breakthrough season and Copa America

This time last year, Theo Bair was at a career crossroads.

He’d come through an elite academy in Vancouver Whitecaps. He had tried his hand in Scandinavia with Hamarkameratene. But at St Johnstone, his first try at football in the UK yielded a sole goal in 38 appearances. Some fans of his previous club laughed as Motherwell boss Stuart Kettlewell spoke of the potential the former Canadian youth international had after bringing him to Fir Park.

As his name featured on the same team sheet as Lionel Messi last week at Copa America when Argentina faced Jesse Marsch’s Canada, the critics couldn’t be further away. Phoning in from Kansas ahead of a key win on matchday two of the major tournament vs Peru, there was time for reflection.

Bair told The Motherwell Times: “My situation last year wasn’t exactly ideal. Having the season I had and spending the time with the gaffer and the staff, I knew I was going to get to somewhere. I didn’t know it would be to here but I am grateful and happy I did.

“This is my first tournament so it comes with a bit higher standards. Everybody is very sharp and it’s very professional. That is what I wanted and I am enjoying it. There are things I need to learn but I feel I am getting better every day.

“Stuart’s very intricate as well. There’s a lot of tactics involved, the only difference here is we are training in boiling heat. Maybe some of the physical demands are bigger here because of the way we want to play but I wouldn’t say it’s too dissimilar (to Motherwell training).”

He’s a cold weather man, so the sometimes swampy Dalziel training pitches back in ML1 are a world away from the heat he’s endured this international excursion. Bair isn’t a man who speaks in the usual footballer rhetoric, he’s open and honest about himself, the team he is representing and his path to where he’s at now.

The striker doesn’t shy away from turning down an extended St Johnstone stay for a new challenge elsewhere. He doesn’t shirk the fact he couldn’t have predicted last term going the way it did. What he needed when the chips were down was an arm around the shoulder, one he found in Motherwell that inspired him to 15 goals and six assists.

He explained: “Before the season I set some goals for myself and I broke all the goals I set. That is what you want for your season. You want to be getting better everyday. I surpassed my own expectations.

“Credit to the gaffer and his staff, they knew us inside out. They got the best out of us on the pitch just by knowing our strengths. I remember the first day I came in, I had a bit of an injury and the gaffer said I need to you play and be ready to go.

“I played against Dundee, scored and the rest is history. That belief is the first step to having a good season. I was asked to go back to St Johnstone and I didn’t want to. That’s the truth and I can say it now. I didn’t go back. I worked by myself and trained with some guys back home, and that first game I was blowing!

“I didn’t get a pre-season at all last season. I knew my own quality and worth. I think a lot of people misinterpreted who I was because of my time at St Johnstone. I had a part to play in that as well but if people really watch me day in and day out at training, they will understand who I am as a player. I guess at St Johnstone that was not seen. People judged me for it which is fair. At Motherwell, people see the real Theo Bair.”

A 6ft4 striker with a turn of pace. Did the forward feel like he was pigeon-holed as a man you could lump it?

He replied: “That’s 100% it. At St Johnstone at the time we were playing direct football and I had come from an academy programme, and even in Norway, we only played football. We weren't kicking the ball trying to win headers, it was patterns of play.

“I had to adjust in the Scottish game and I think I got a lot better at it, especially at Motherwell. I learned the tricks that I needed to win the ball in the air and those things. People expect it from me because I am a giant but I want to play football.”

He’d netted a couple of goals before the New Year, but his two-goal haul in a 3-1 win over Livingston is where things really kicked into gear for Bair. He then scored against Hibs, a lovely low drive, before Mika Biereth’s departure left him leading the charge up front.

Bair said: “The day before I wasn’t meant to start, I am pretty sure. But I had an unbelievable session. The gaffer came over to me and said how do I feel and I said I feel great. I came in the next day not expecting anything, but I saw my name on the board, and scored two goals.

“I feel it happened in a lot of the games, that if I scored early the rest of my game would be really good. I scored the first one in the Livingston game, and then I could breathe a bit.

“I had a plan to make a little video compilation (at end of the season) with my goals but I decided it wasn’t even worth it. My football spoke for itself and a lot of people had to eat their words.”

So good has Bair’s form been, that the inevitable transfer speculation has begun. It’s not something Bair concerns himself with all that much, as he looks to keep improving with Canada alongside the likes of Lille’s Jonathan David.

He added: “The gaffer told me this as I stepped in the door. He reminded me I have nothing to prove to anyone but myself. I think those words were the most important to me. Testament to how his staff dealt with me, and these opportunities I am getting being here with the national team, the interest from other clubs, that is how football goes I guess.

“I am not looking forward to any break if I am honest. I feel I got a lot of time taken away from me in Covid so this is time I am trying to make up. I want to keep going and keep building.

“I am relativley new to the national team right now. I am picking people’s brains. I speak to Cyle Larin a lot, he has a lot of experience and he teaches me little things. Watching Jonathan who’s actually younger than me, he is a world class striker. Watching his day in day out routine is good for me. If you look at my career, I am relatively new to the game if you look at the minutes I have played. I am striving to be a better striker and human.”