When Theo Bair arrived at Motherwell last summer, there were question marks from the Fir Park faithful over whether he was up to the required standard to play for the club. It is a mark of his incredible turnaround that the same question is now being posed over the prospect of the striker representing either side of the Old Firm.
After scoring just one goal for St Johnstone, Bair has found a new lease of life in Lanarkshire, and crucially, a manager in Stuart Kettlewell that believes in him. He plundered 15 goals and provided six assists across a hugely impressive debut season in claret and amber. So much so, that it is more than likely to also have been his last.
English Championship sides Blackburn Rovers and Bristol City, alongside a host of German clubs, have been linked with a move for Bair, who is currently part of Jesse Marsch’s Canada squad at the Copa America. And so too, have both Celtic and Rangers, who have been impressed by Bair’s displays against them last season.
Does the 24-year-old have what it takes to make that next step up in his career so rapidly after being saved from the football scrapheap just a year ago?
“If you look at my season people will say, ‘Oh, this is the only good thing Theo Bair has done in his career’,” Bair said.
“But this is the only full season I’ve had in my career, too.
“This is only the beginning for me. Having trust from other people allows me to believe in myself.
“If a transfer were to come, I want to go as high as possible and test myself. I think I need to be tested physically.
“I need to go and prove myself right. I believe I can score at the highest levels, and I don’t want this season to be a one-off.”
Legendary Motherwell striker and still a regular attendee at Fir Park, Willie Pettigrew, developed that theme when asked his opinion on the man currently leading the line for his beloved club, and his suitability for a move to either of the big two in Glasgow.
Pettigrew is a big fan of Bair, but thinks that his next step – if he must move on from Motherwell this summer - could be a critical one in the context of his career.
“He has to be careful and show that this was not a one-season wonder,” Pettigrew said.
“He’ll be learning all the time, especially with being away with Canada at the Copa America, that can only help.
“He’s a young lad, he’s only 24, so he has a lot to learn. I just don’t see that being at Motherwell unfortunately.
“I would say that he has to be careful about his next move. He has done really well at Motherwell, because Motherwell needed a goalscorer, but he has to develop other aspects of his game.
“You look at the likes of Lawrence Shankland, for a long time he was made out to just simply be a goalscorer, but he is really clever and he leads the line well for Hearts. That’s what I was looking forward to seeing from Theo Bair next season, but I doubt he will be here.
“He has done brilliantly in terms of his goalscoring, but I think there is room for improvement there in terms of how he brings others into the play.
“I think he’s got to move down south or abroad. When you go to Ibrox or Parkhead it’s a completely different environment. You are constantly under scrutiny.
“It could either make him a great player or it could destroy him, some players go there and disappear.
“I’d like him to stay at Motherwell for another year, but I know that opportunities like that are difficult to turn down for both the club and the player.
“At Motherwell he has a manager, along with his assistant Stephen Frail, who knows whether to give him a pat on the back or a bollocking, and he won’t get that everywhere.”
That ability the Motherwell management team have shown in getting the best out of strikers like Bair, and Kevin van Veen before him, cannot be underestimated when assessing the phenomenal turnaround in Bair’s fortunes, Pettigrew believes.
“Jim McLean never cuddled me, right enough,” he laughed.
“But I think Kettlewell has got that. He knows when to applaud him and when to give him a reminder. He’s been brilliant for him, as he was with Kevin van Veen. You’ve got to give Stuart a lot of praise for how he has dealt with him.
“Theo wasn’t an instant success at Motherwell. He came in after that difficult period at St Johnstone where he only scored the one goal, and although he got one on the opening day at Dundee, he wasn’t an immediate success.
“He took a wee while to settle in, but Kettlewell stuck by him, and since he has gone through the middle he has done really well.
“He’s still developing, he’s not a top-quality striker just yet. He still has a lot to learn, and I would have been looking forward to seeing him develop at Motherwell.
“The club have turned down £750,000 for him I think, and they should get a decent amount of money for him in the end, which is the flip side. Motherwell have to develop players and sell them on, sadly for the fans sometimes.
“Theo’s problem seemed to be his belief in himself. As a striker, if you don’t believe you are going to score, then there’s not much point in going out there.
“He seems to have developed that belief, and every time he was on the ball towards the end of the season the crowd were up in the stands.
“The good thing is that he is playing his football in the final third. He wasn’t being asked to come back all that much last season, with the likes of Blair Spittal and young Lennon Miller in behind him. I played fitba with his granda at school, incidentally, that’s how old I am!
“You can see the difference in his stature now. He isn’t hiding, he’s always looking for the ball, and he is so physically strong as well.
“He’s done well, and it will be a shame to see him go, but he isn’t the finished article just yet.”
