Jordan Morris will not be joining the US Mens National Team as they take on Mexico and Costa Rica in World Cup qualifying in the coming week. USA coach Jurgen Klinsmann has replaced the injured Seattle Sounder on the roster with LA Galaxy’s Alan Gordon.
Forward Alan Gordon has been called in to replace the injured Jordan Morris for #USAvMEX & #USAvCRC: https://t.co/Tp6yicYboU pic.twitter.com/VVnSZquFXJ
— U.S. Soccer (@ussoccer) November 8, 2016
Morris was substituted at halftime by Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer in the second leg of the Western Conference semifinal. The problem was initially reported as a thigh injury by the club staff, but Schmetzer said after the match that the rookie had a hamstring strain.
The 22-year-old’s replacement could be seen as good news or bad news for Sounders fans. Glass-half-empty types would say this indicates Morris’ injury is severe enough that the USMNT trainers found it unlikely he could play even against Costa Rica on November 15. Optimistic ones can point out that the forward will now stay home with the doctors and trainers who know him the best, and skip unnecessary travel.
Absent a further update on the homegrown player’s condition, it’s impossible to gauge the chances of a return for the home leg of the Western Conference finals on November 22, but it’s certainly possible that Klinsmann and his staff simply didn’t want to risk a roster spot on even a slightly injured player.
The updated roster for the first two matches of the Hex follows:
U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION (Club; WCQ Caps/Goals):
Goalkeepers (4): Brad Guzan (Middlesbrough; 11/0), Ethan Horvath (Molde; 0/0), Tim Howard (Colorado Rapids; 32/0), William Yarbrough (Club Leon; 0/0)
Defenders (9): Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City; 8/1), Steve Birnbaum (D.C. United; 2/0), John Brooks (Hertha Berlin; 0/0), Cameron Carter-Vickers (Tottenham Hotspur; 0/0), Timmy Chandler (Eintracht Frankfurt; 1/0), Omar Gonzalez (Pachuca; 10/0), Fabian Johnson (Borussia Moenchengladbach; 13/1), Michael Orozco (Club Tijuana; 5/1), DeAndre Yedlin (Newcastle United; 4/0)
Midfielders (9): Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union; 6/0), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC; 29/5), Lynden Gooch (Sunderland; 0/0), Julian Green (Bayern Munich; 0/0), Jermaine Jones (Colorado Rapids; 14/0), Sacha Kljestan (New York Red Bulls; 17/2), Christian Pulisic (Borussia Dortmund; 3/2), Caleb Stanko (FC Vaduz; 1/0), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City; 14/3)
Forwards (4): Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC; 31/16), Alan Gordon (LA Galaxy; 1/0), Aron Johannsson (Werder Bremen; 3/1), Bobby Wood (Hamburg; 6/2)