Middlesbrough face nervous Aidan Morris wait after international blow | OneFootball

Middlesbrough's Aidan Morris has suffered a knee sprain on international duty with the United States

Middlesbrough midfielder Aidan Morris has suffered a knee sprain while on international duty with the United States, and subsequently missed out on the action as Mauricio Pochettino's men defeated Jamaica 1-0 in a CONCACAF Nations League clash on Thursday night.

As reported by the Northern Echo, the 22-year-old is unable to feature in Tuesday's reverse fixture, and has consequently left his national squad to return to Boro, where his injury will be closely assessed - leaving the Teessiders with a nervous wait.

Boro signed Morris from Major League Soccer outfit Columbus Crew in June for a fee of £3.14m, and he has appeared in all 15 Championship games for Michael Carrick's men so far this term, including 14 starts.

Morris injury could be a big blow for Boro

The USA international has been a mainstay in Carrick's side, who sit just one point and one place behind the play-offs, a third of the way through the campaign.

Furthermore, following an away trip to newly promoted Oxford United, which will be their first game after the international break, Boro then face fellow top-six hopefuls Blackburn Rovers, in what could prove to be a tricky encounter, which could be made all the more difficult by the potential absence of Morris.

If the 22-year-old's absence proves to be longer term, he could then miss a late November meeting with Yorkshire rivals Hull City, while Carrick's men face a whole host of difficult fixtures in December, and will be sweating on the fitness of the USA international.

The final month of the year sees Boro lock horns with automatic promotion hopefuls Burnley twice, at the start and end of the month, while they also travel to last year's play-off finalists Leeds United, as well as hosting fellow play-off chasers Millwall.

Meanwhile, according to FotMob, Boro boast the fifth-highest average possession in the Championship, enjoying 55.7%, which is an effort Morris has been absolutely pivotal towards, as he is a metronome in their midfield with an incredible pass accuracy of 93.8%.

The midfielder could be a big miss for the Teessiders, while Carrick recently acknowledged how quickly the USA man has settled into life in England.

He said: "I think you can see how he’s playing his football, the brightness and the sharpness and happiness really, you can only do that if it’s coming from a good place, so credit to him for that.

"And, also, credit to the boys for creating that environment for him to easily settle into as well."

Dan Barlaser or Jonny Howson may have to replace Morris

If the 22-year-old is not fit to return to action, or indeed out for a long period of time, then his place in the Boro starting XI, alongside Hayden Hackney, will be taken by either former Rotherham United man Dan Barlaser or veteran Jonny Howson.

Both Barlaser and Howson have made just one start in the Championship this season, which epitomises how much of a key figure Morris has already become since signing in August.

While the latter is incredibly experienced at second tier level, perhaps it is the former Rotherham man who will be in pole position to replace Morris.

The 27-year-old has appeared as a substitute in the Championship on six occasions this term, compared to the veteran's five substitute appearances in the league, while Barlaser also appears to be more likely to emulate the American's youthful energy.