For Canadian winger Liam Millar, the sight of national team comrade Marcelo Flores flailing on the pitch for Tigres on Sunday, watching his World Cup dreams come crashing to an end courtesy a ruptured ACL, was tough to bear.
Millar was felled by the same injury while playing for Hull against Burnley in England’s Championship in October 2024, so he knows exactly what his teammate faces.
Flores will undergo surgery on Friday, and while Millar has been unable to speak with him just yet, he knows exactly what he’ll say.
“You’ve got to allow yourself to have that moment,” Millar said. “There comes a point where you fully realize what’s happened and it feels like your dreams are falling apart. You have to accept that reality first. Once you’ve accepted it, then you can shift your focus to coming back stronger than ever. That was my mentality and that’s the advice I’d give him. I’ll speak to him when he’s ready. I don’t want to push him.
“I think I’m proof that you can come back and still play at a very high level. Alphonso Davies is another example. When he’s been healthy, he’s been electric. These injuries don’t have to define you. You can come back even better.”
Millar acknowledged the struggles he personally endured both physically and mentally following his injury.
“There was definitely a period during rehab when I didn’t know what was going to happen. I didn’t even know if I’d play football again.” Millar explained. “There was a phase where I just didn’t understand what was going on in my life. I kind of blanked everything out. I doubted whether I’d play again, whether I’d be ready for Canada, whether I’d be able to help the team the way I wanted to.
“But the key thing was getting through that period and finding my way back. I’m a firm believer that nobody is at 100 per cent all the time. Nobody is at zero per cent all the time, either. I always try to be around 80 or 85 per cent mentally. Sometimes you dip below that and sometimes you go above it. When we got promoted, I was definitely at 100 per cent.”
Millar is the latest Canadian, joining the likes of legends Craig Forrest, Paul Stalteri and Tomas Radzinski to become a Premier League footballer.
Hull City earned promotion last month, beating Canadian teammate Alfie Jones’ Middlesbrough in the Championship promotion playoff, and thus securing a spot in next season’s Premier League.
It didn’t come easily. Initially scheduled to play another teammate in Cyle Larin and Southampton, the Saints were expelled after being found guilty of spying on Middlesbrough ahead of the semifinal.
The saga gripped English football, even stealing headlines from the FA Cup Final. For Millar, it was a surreal experience.
“Yeah, it was crazy,” Millar said. “We spent a couple of sessions preparing for Southampton because we thought we’d be playing them. Obviously, they play a certain way, so we were focused on that. Then, during the week, we found out it was most likely going to be Middlesbrough. I heard our coach say the analysts stayed up until five in the morning preparing a new video package for Middlesbrough.”
It will be a major step up from Championship football to arguably the top league in the world. It is something the Brampton, Ont., native is not taking for granted, although he is confident his game will translate.
“I actually think my game probably suits the Premier League even more. Especially with the way we’ll most likely end up playing, I think it should suit me very well,” Millar suggests.
“I’m looking forward to going back and fighting for my place. Obviously, when you get promoted, nobody knows what’s going to happen. You don’t know who the club might bring in or what changes they’ll make. But after the World Cup, I’ll go back determined to earn my spot and play as many games as possible.”
The World Cup is, of course, at the front of Millar’s mind. A left winger by trade, he has also played on the right, but says as long as he is on the pitch, he is happy, where on the pitch exactly is irrelevant. There is a good chance he will be on the pitch … a lot. Coach Jesse Marsch used Millar on the left with Davies when he first assumed the coach’s job two years ago. It worked well, only to be halted by Millar’s knee injury.
Now, with Davies unlikely to be available to start the World Cup, and with competition for the left-wing spot weakened with Ali Ahmed also struggling with injury, a Richie Laryea combination with Millar seems to be a trusted and effective starting decision already made.
Like his teammates, the short term for Millar is simple: just win. However, he is looking longer term as well.
“Of course, everyone wants to go as far as possible in the tournament,” Millar said. “That’s the goal for the team and for the country. But personally, I think about the kids who are going to watch.
“When I was growing up, I never got to watch Canada at a World Cup. I never got to see what Canadian players looked like on the biggest stage. Now we’re hosting a World Cup and, in my opinion, we have the best team Canada has ever had.
“Every time I step onto the field, I want to set an example. I want kids watching to see what it means to represent Canada and understand the standard that’s required. That’s what motivates me.”
Having endured dark times on the trainers table, nothing is taken for granted by Millar. One boyhood dream — Premier League promotion — has already been accomplished; now a World Cup on home soil, off the back of a solitary appearance off the bench four years ago, awaits. With that comes the opportunity to play a leading role, and a role that seems to fit perfectly into the career trajectory of Liam Millar.