AS a youngster growing up in the United States, Aidan Morris was urged to give football a try because he'd come home from baseball and still have bundles of energy.

As Middlesbrough and their opponents have quickly found out, the midfielder is high energy on the pitch.

While Morris admits the switch across the pond has presented certain difficulties off the pitch, inevitable for a youngster moving across the world on his own, there's been absolutely no problem whatsoever acclimatising on the pitch.

Morris has started all three of Boro's league and cup games so far this season and very quickly made an impact.

And, as he told the Northern Echo when he spoke to the media after Boro's excellent open training session at the Riverside on Monday: "I'm just getting started."

When he was getting started in football as a kid, he'd watch and idolise the man who is now his boss.

"Manchester United was my team growing up so it's kind of cool being around one of the players I watched growing up," says Morris, who revealed Paul Scholes, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Toni Kroos and Luka Modric were the other players he studied and loved.

"He's been great. I try to be a sponge and take it all in, learn as much as I can and ask as many questions as I can.

"I'm sure our relationship will keep getting better. He helps me in training for sure. He pulls me aside sometimes and tells me little things he's seen. And this is just the start, I'm sure it will continue."

Asked, though, whether he has to pinch himself now Carrick is his boss, Morris' answer offered an indication of the business-like approach that led to him becoming one of the stars in MLS and earning his Boro move.

"No, it's work time," he says.

"You have to concentrate on work and do my job, as he does. Work is work."

And Morris certainly isn't the type to shirk hard work. How is he keeping himself busy away from training as he settles into his new surroundings?

"Workouts at home," he says.

He does, of course, allow himself some down-time, though, and has headed into Yarm to try some of the restaurants.

Having left his family and made the trip to the UK on his own, Morris is happy to admit the change of culture and surroundings will take some getting used to.

"For sure it's not easy. It has it's good days and bad days but mostly good days now," he says.

"It is difficult because life is so much different here and it's hard to really nail one thing on the head with it all, but I have such great teammates who make the transition easy. I call family a lot back home and try to keep myself busy. I try to occupy myself the best I can."

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His family have been able to watch two of Boro's three competitive games on TV, one being the Carabao Cup victory at Leeds last week.

And when he rang home after that game, there's no doubting Boro's away following at Elland Road will have been a major topic of conversation.

"Home is home and the support is always amazing but the coolest thing for me is the away games and seeing the energy and the atmosphere from our fans," said Morris.

"It's surreal to me, that's been really cool.

"I've learnt so much in the past three games. Going to Leeds and winning and going to Derby in a game we're supposed to win and losing, I suppose that just sums up this league and I've learnt so much. It's been so fun and I'm just getting started. I'll just keep learning and growing."

He's learnt and grown a lot since he took up football as a kid.

"I started playing baseball when I was young and coming home with too much energy," he says.

"I think my family were just like you need to be running more. I did my running with a different sport, soccer. At that stage I just went out there and had fun and it sparked the joy.

"It's been a joy so far here."