Toronto FC introduced their latest – well, at least at the time – addition on Tuesday afternoon when Kemar Lawrence spoke to the media.

The 28-year-old Jamaican defender signed on March 7 after two seasons with Belgian side RSC Anderlecht. Lawrence had options to remain in Europe, but opted to return to North America.

“The big [reason], to be honest,  is family,” the defender explained. “Being around the wife, being around the kids, for me that's very important.”

“I could have stayed in Anderlecht – I was offered a deal more than once, I could have went to France or even the Championship in England. The main thing was family,” Lawrence continued. “I get a different drive when my family's around, it brings out a different beast in me, a different passion. It felt kind of selfish being there for almost a year and not seeing my family so I wanted to make a decision that would benefit, not only me, but us in general.”

Having spent five seasons with the New York Red Bulls, Lawrence is reunited with coach Chris Armas and TFC General Manager Ali Curtis.

“That had something to do with it because me and Chris are pretty close and me and Ali been pretty good, he's the one that brought me in when I was at New York, so we have a good relationship,” replied Lawrence. “It wasn't too much. I was more concerned about the environment, the mindset of the players, and the mindset of the owners and the staff.”

“I'm coming here to win and I felt this team will give me the best chances of doing that immediately. I didn't want to go into a team where it's rebuilding, starting over,” he added. “I want to let loose, have some fun on the field, and, hopefully, at the end of this year I'm walking away with an MLS Cup.”

He’s been watching the club’s progress closely since conversations about a return to MLS began.

“It's a footballing team,” Lawrence remarked. “I know a lot of guys based off of playing with them or against them in years back. After everybody understands Chris’ tactics and know exactly what he wants and we get everybody on the field, I feel we're going to be where we need to be.”

“We're going to be winning games and we're going to be competing for the title,” he emphasized. “That's one of the main reasons I came here: to compete for the title.”

The reinforcements keep arriving as TFC enters a busy spell.

Yeferson Soteldo made his cameo debut on Saturday against the Red Bulls, Lawrence is in contention for his first appearance come Wednesday clash with the defending MLS Cup Champions Columbus SC, and it was announced on Tuesday that the long-rumoured signing of forward Dom Dwyer had been completed.

With incoming moves TFC were forced to place Griffin Dorsey on waivers.

“With Kemar and Yeferson we’re trying to add pieces. I was getting to know Griffin, we used him in a Champions League game, he came in and did admirably,” said Armas. “You have to make room at times. He's a really good young professional, so this was not an easy decision.”

Dorsey, selected in the 2019 MLS SuperDraft, departs after two seasons with the club.

The additions come just as the club enters a busy spell ahead of the June international break. After the midweek visit of Columbus to Exploria Stadium, TFC head back to New York City for a clash with NYCFC on Saturday and then return to weekly play with matches against Orlando City SC and a return fixture against the Crew to close the month.

“[Lawrence] is available for tomorrow,” said Armas. “He's an intelligent player and he is versatile. It's going to be clear for everyone to see that when he's out there's a certain presence that he has and he brings, as we say, bite.”

“He brings an intensity and aggressiveness that we need on our back-line and in our team in general,” he continued. “Kemar is an aggressive defender. He's fast. He's fearless. And when you inject that quality into your team, it's going to make us better.”

The pieces coming together, one could feel the stirring of the winds through the Zoom call.

“Chris is different,” smiled Lawrence, asked about Armas changing the style of TFC. “He tends to do that, to bring a little bit of a different vibe, a different energy, a different coaching style.”

“I trust him. At Red Bulls I understood what he was doing and my time there I did it to the best of my abilities and he loved me for that,” he continued. “Here I don't think it will be any different.”

“He will bring his style, he will do what he came to do and it's up to the players to trust and believe in what he's doing. If you do that, the results will start to fall into place. Guys will love him as a person, guys will love him as a coach, because I love him as both a person and as a coach,” Lawrence added. “He's an awesome human being, but he's a great coach and he's going to be successful.”

Familiarity, both with the staff and the city, were factors. But Lawrence came here for one principal reason.

“I've been to Toronto a lot. I have two brothers in Toronto and a sister – I’ve got family there,” said Lawrence. “Everybody's been telling me that the city's good, the city is going to be fun and good for my family, but for me it's championship.... Can I win a championship? Do we have the tools to win a championship? And what I saw before signing, ‘Yeah, add me to this and we can really make some sparks around here.’”