Jordan Morris provided an update to his rehab from knee surgery, as well as a timeline to his return to the field in an interview during the FOX broadcast of the Seattle Sounders’ 1-1 draw with Atlanta United Sunday.
Morris, who suffered a torn left ACL while on loan with Swansea City on Feb. 20, had surgery March 10. He also tore his right ACL ahead of the 2018 MLS season, causing him to miss that entire campaign
“I think it’s pretty similar to the last one — eight to 10 months is what they’re saying,” Morris said. “It’s going well so far, it’s definitely a grind and frustrating at points, but every day getting a bit better and it's just a lot of rehabbing.
That all but guarantees the 26-year-old winger will miss the entire 2021 MLS season, with a return likely for the start of preseason in February.
Of course, if it’s eight months, or even a little sooner, it could put Morris in contention for important World Cup qualifiers for the US men's national team.
“I think there’s definitely an itch to come back quick, but obviously I’m not going to rush anything and see how things go down the line,” Morris said. “It's still pretty early on, but obviously there’s a lot of important games and you just miss playing, you want to be back on the field so I think that itch is definitely, but the most important thing is getting it right before you come back.”
Morris said he draws inspiration from the occasional check-ins from the USMNT coaches and seeing his teammates at the Sounders’ training facility.
“When I go into training, it’s always nice to be able to hang out with them before a hard day,” he said.
The Sounders haven’t skipped a beat with Morris out. The club have also managed to find success despite injuries to Nico Lodeiro and Stefan Frei, sitting atop the Western Conference with 17 points from seven matches.
“It’s been great. The mentality of this team is unbelievable,” Morris said. “You see guys step into positions and just feeling like there’s no change. I think we have a lot of really quality players obviously. And then this new formation is working really well. I think it puts a lot of guys in their best positions and it’s obviously been a really good start to the season.”
