Sunderland and Blackburn eye 15-goal striker, Bundesliga side lead race

• EXCLUSIVE from Graeme Bailey

Championship trio Sunderland, Blackburn Rovers and Cardiff City are all admirers of Motherwell striker Theo Bair but Bundesliga newcomers St Pauli are in pole position as things stand.

HITC understands that, after a superb season in the Scottish Premiership, the Canada international centre-forward has attracted interest from below the border and across the Channel.

Three clubs in England’s second tier have watched Theo Bair closely.

Sunderland have struggled for goals ever since Ross Stewart left for Southampton in the summer of 2023, scoring only 52 goals in 46 games en route to a highly-disappointing 17th place finish. Cardiff managed just one more in last season’s Championship.

Blackburn Rovers, meanwhile, narrowly dodged relegation on a dramatic final day but there remains a very real possibility that they could lose Golden Boot winner Sammie Szmodics between now and September.

Sunderland among clubs chasing Motherwell’s Theo Bair

HITC have been told, however, that the trio are likely to miss out on the chance to bring in the 6ft 3ins Bair from Fir Park. St Pauli, returning to the German top flight for the first time in 13 years after winning the Bundesliga Zwei recently, are currently at the front of the queue.

The Hamburg-based outfit already have a number of players with a history in the British game. One-time Hull City midfielder Jackson Irvine is the St Pauli captain these days, while ex-Bolton Wanderers winger Dapo Afolayan has proven to be a big hit in Germany.

One-time Dundee United youngster Scott Banks spent the 2023/24 campaign on loan at the Millerntor Stadion from Crystal Palace too.

Bundesliga newcomers want another ex-Scotland based star

After a disappointing spell at St Johnstone in which he found the net only once, Theo Bair certainly hit his stride in the mustard of Motherwell.

The one-time Vancouver Whitecaps starlet – who begun his career in Major League Soccer – hit 15 and provided a further five assists in 41 games for Stuart Kettlewell’s side.

His contract expires in the summer of 2025, however, meaning Motherwell will likely have to fell for an appropriate fee.

“We brought Theo in for nothing, and for significantly less money than what he was on previously. All he wanted was to get a chance to see if he could springboard himself forward, set some milestones at this club, and see where it took us,” Kettlewell said this week. “That’s exactly what we’ve done.

“I’m certainly not in a rush to try and move big Theo on. But money talks in this game. And if someone puts a significant amount of money forward for his services, that’s how the game works.

“If someone throws a chunk of money at you then there will be a conversation.”

Bair, who laughed off the ‘Canadian Messi‘ moniker bestowed upon him by a number of Motherwell supporters, should have some clarity about his future in the coming days of weeks.