The 20-year-old Stanford University forward underwent surgery on June 30th for a stress fracture in his knee. It is still unknown how long it will tak
The 20-year-old Stanford University forward underwent surgery on June 30th for a stress fracture in his knee. It is still unknown how long it will take for Jordan Morris to recover from the surgery, and even though this type of surgery usually does not require long recovery, it is unlikely that he would be ready for the CONCACAF Gold Cup.
The forward has had great success in his fledgling career so far, as the star player at Stanford and in the U.S. U-23, as the first college player in over a decade to get called to the national team. Morris has also been participating in matches with the U.S. senior team, as he scored his first international goal and winning-goal against Mexico in April, as well as providing the assist for Bobby Wood’s goal against the Netherlands in a recent friendly.
Many fans were expecting Morris to be called for the Gold Cup roster, but now with the news of the knee surgery we wonder if this stress fracture may have contributed to Coach Klinsmann leaving Morris out the tournament.
As far as expectation for Morris, he should be good to go when the Stanford season starts. If he continues to play well and succeeds during the next fall, he should be called for the Olympic qualifying in October and hopefully make it to the professional league in December. But Morris is definitely not in a rush to make that jump just yet:
[quote_box_center]”It was never really about the money at all,” Morris said. “It was more that I am just really, truly loving it at Stanford and I realized I’d never get that experience back. The pro game will be there in another six months.”[/quote_box_center]
It is comforting to see a rising star with such a level head. Let’s hope he continues to develop into the best player he can be.