COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Less than a week after playing his last match with the Columbus Crew, midfielder Aidan Morris officially signed with Middlesbrough on Friday. Both clubs acknowledged the transfer as the Florida native gets set to begin the next chapter of his career with the English Football League Championship team.
Morris, who signed a four-year contract with Middlesbrough, played in 83 Major League Soccer regular season games, starting in 67 of them, and scoring six goals and 14 assists. The 22-year-old started all seven postseason games he’s played in and helped the Crew win the 2020 and 2023 MLS Cups.
“We’re delighted to welcome Aidan to the club. He’s a good player,” Boro head coach Michael Carrick said in a press release. “He suits our style of play, he’s strong, he likes to get on the ball, and he plays off both feet. He’s a good age, but he’s already had a taste of success and he has a good amount of experience.”
After starting with the Crew Academy in 2017, Morris signed a Homegrown contract with the team in January 2020. He said the deal with Middlesbrough was months in the making.
“They were interested but they still had time left in their season but they wanted to figure out how that went,” Morris said. “I was able to have a phone call with Michael Carrick. He was a person I looked up to growing up watching soccer. To be able to have a phone call with that guy was special.”
Carrick was able to sell the idea of having Morris fit into the squad.
“It seemed like this was the right step to take in my career, and for me as a person, to step outside my comfort zone and challenge myself,” Morris said.
Morris, who has represented the United States national team on multiple levels, earned his first senior cap last year when he played all 90 minutes in an international friendly against Serbia. He has made five appearances for the senior national team and was recently in camp with the U.S. under-23 team for its final pre-Olympic training camp.
The roster for this summer’s Paris Olympics has yet to be announced.