‘I’m Ready’: Chris Richards’ World Cup Return Is A Major Boon For USA’s Leaky Defense

U.S. Men’s National Team Training Base (IRVINE, Calif.) — There was no tape supporting his sore left ankle. There was no ice on it, no limp as he walked toward a microphone in front of several dozen reporters, no indication at all that Chris Richards — the United States World Cup team’s top defender — was anything other than 100 percent ahead of the Americans tournament opener up the coast at Los Angeles Stadium in Inglewood on Friday against Paraguay. OK, maybe not 100 percent. But Richards insisted on Wednesday that he’s healthy and available to start. “I’m feeling good,” the Alabama-born center back said when asked if he’s recovered from the injury he suffered playing for English Premier League club Crystal Palace last month. “Maybe it’s a little swollen, [but] I’m ready.” As if Richards was ever going to miss the World Cup opener. He was expected to anchor the USA’s back line at global soccer’s last quadrennial showpiece four years ago in Qatar, only to be felled by a torn hamstring that forced him to watch the Americans’ run to the knockout stage from his couch. His return is a godsend for a Stars and Stripes squad that has leaked preventable goals in each if its last two matches without him, conceding twice in each of their pre-World Cup games against Senegal and Germany. For the U.S. to have a long stay on home soil — the U.S. is co-hosting this summer’s event with Canada and Mexico — having the steady, hard-tackling Richards on the field will be essential. The fact is the Americans got lucky. When he had to be taken off the field on a stretcher during Palace’s 2-2 tie with Brentford on May 17, both he and U.S. fans were worried that Richards would miss a second consecutive World Cup. “I was pretty devastated,” he said. “I feared the worst.” Once he realized the ailment would only sideline him for weeks rather than months, there was only one question in his mind. “How do I get ready to play against Paraguay?” The answer involved almost around-the-clock rehab. “That’s what I’ve been doing for 24 hours [a day],” he said. “Whatever it takes to be available.” While the ankle still isn’t quite in pre-injury condition, Richards has been involved fully in training over the last three days with no restrictions or problems afterward. “And I think y’all have seen the intensity of our practices” under Argentine coach Mauricio Pochettino, he joked. “Part of playing the sport is you’re gonna have some pain at some point,” he said. “I’m totally OK with that as long as functionally I’m good.” Now that he is, Ricahrds teammates are thrilled to have him back. “He’s looked good,” forward Haji Wright said when I asked him how Richards has been training since the team becan working out here on Monday. “He hasn’t missed a beat.” “Chris is one of the most important players on the team,” added veteran fullback/winger Tim Weah. “Seeing him healthy and playing his best football is everything.” It also gives Pochettino’s squad another experienced, vocal leader in his lineup. “He’s just somebody who brings a lot of energy, whether it’s understanding when somebody needs to be able to step up or wake up, or when somebody needs an arm around their shoulders,” fellow central defender Mark McKenzie said of Richards. “He has a presence on the field.” That presence matters, former U.S. center back and National Soccer Hall of Famer Marcello Balboa told me Wednesday after watching his old squad train. “He’s an organizer,” Balboa said. “He’s good in the air, he’s good on set pieces, he’s a very physical guy, he can get into a tackle. “If you’re going to get out of the group, and you’re going to try to get deep in this tournament, the spine of the team has to be strong,” he continued. When you look at this team with Richards, when he’s healthy, he’s a guy that’ll just make that back line a little bit more solid, a little bit more secure.” After the Paraguay match, Richards will have a full week to rest and be ready for the second group stage contest, in Seattle versus Australia on June 19. He brushed aside any suggestion that playing in Friday’s curtain-raiser could jeopardize his health for the rest of the first round —and hopefully beyond. “If I’m making myself available,” said Richards, “It’s because they can trust me to play at 100 percent.”