Jordan Morris has decided not to join German Bundesliga side Werder Bremen and instead pursue his professional career in the United States, potentially clearing the way for him to join Sounders FC this spring.
Werder Bremen announced Tuesday that they will no longer pursue Morris after he informed club officials that he “currently sees his future in America.” Morris, the 21-year-old Mercer Island native who led Stanford to the NCAA title last month and was recently named the top player in college soccer, has been one of the major talking points in MLS after the Sounders offered him the most lucrative Homegrown Player contract in league history last year.
"Following intense talks, the player made clear that he currently sees his future in America," Werder Bremen CEO Thomas Eichin said in the statement. "Of course, we respect this decision.
"We're in a situation now where we need players who identify with Werder and the way things are done here completely, in order for them to focus properly on the task ahead.
"For this reason, we are distancing ourselves from a transfer for the time being, but we will remain in close contact with him and are entertaining the idea of working together in the future."
The Sounders have not made a comment on the news, but GM and President of Soccer Garth Lagerwey said during the MLS SuperDraft last week that he would respect Morris' decision-making process.
Morris joined Werder Bremen’s winter camp in Turkey in Jan. 8 while weighing his professional options, and impressed enough for the club to reportedly make a contract offer in recent days. His time in Germany prompted comments from Sounders GM and President of Soccer Garth Lagerwey and MLS Commissioner Don Garber last week during the MLS SuperDraft, with both men hopeful that Morris would ultimately land in MLS.
Morris has earned seven caps for the U.S. national team, and was called into the USMNT’s January camp in California ahead of upcoming friendlies against Iceland and Canada.
Morris was a member of the Sounders FC Academy before he attended Stanford, where he was named a First-Team All-American his sophomore and junior years.
