LAUDERHILL, Fla. – We don’t yet know where US national team striker Jordan Morris will begin his pro career, but it’s looking very possible that he’ll have a couple of offers to choose from if comments from a Werder Bremen executive are any indication.
Morris is currently on a weeklong training stint with Werder Bremen in Turkey, where the German club has been stationed during the Bundesliga’s annual winter break. Bremen general manager Thomas Eichin praised on Tuesday the 2015 MAC Hermann Trophy winner, who announced that he would turn pro after leading Stanford to the College Cup title in December, saying he “does a few things one rarely sees.”
"He is a totally goal-oriented, no-nonsense guy," said Eichin, a former hockey executive. "He reminds me of my hockey days and the boys who always sought a way forward to get in front of the goal."
Morris already has a deal on the table from the Seattle Sounders, who announced in November that they had offered the 21-year-old the “richest Homegrown Player contract in MLS history.”
A Seattle native, Morris played in the Sounders academy for a year-and-a-half before matriculating to Stanford in 2013. His father, Dr. Michael Morris, has served as the Sounders team physician and orthopedic surgeon since 2009.
Sounders GM and president of soccer Garth Lagerwey responded to Eichin’s comments on Tuesday at the 2016 MLS adidas Player Combine in South Florida.
“Jordan’s over there training and they’re going to react as they react, it’s a thing we don’t control,” Lagerwey told MLSsoccer.com. “It’s part of Jordan’s process, and when he completes his process I hope he signs with the Sounders. I think we put our best foot forward, I think MLS is a great place for a young player to start his career, and I think we continue to have a great relationship with Jordan. So I’m hopeful that will work out.”
Prior to going to train with Bremen, Morris was named by Jurgen Klinsmann to the roster for the US men’s national team’s annual January camp. It is not yet known whether Morris, who has seven caps with the USMNT, will join the camp in Southern California after completing his stint with Bremen.
