Chris Richards wrote his football dream on a sticky note when he was eight years old: play for the United States in a home World Cup. This summer, he did exactly that. Then Belgium put four past his team in the round of 16, and Richards spent the next week in Tokyo unable to stop replaying what he could have done differently.
"That lifelong dream of mine is done," he said plainly. "It's now onto the next thing."
At 26, Richards is already one of Crystal Palace's most experienced defenders — which tells you something about the turnover at Selhurst Park. Michael Olise left for Bayern Munich two summers ago. Eberechi Eze went to Arsenal last summer. Marc Guéhi joined Manchester City in January. This window, Maxence Lacroix — after whom Richards has named one of his rubber chickens, in a story that requires some patience — signed for Chelsea. Palace also have a new manager in Pierre Sage, replacing Oliver Glasner.
The Belgium loss still stings
Richards doesn't hide from his role in the defeat. Nicolas Raskin's run caused him problems in the area, leading to Charles De Ketelaere's opener. Then in stoppage time, a giveaway inside his own box gifted Romelu Lukaku a simple finish to make it 4-1. For a centre-back, that kind of afternoon lingers.
"As a defender you live by the sword and die by the sword," he said. "I really took that heavily and it hurt."
What pulled him through was perspective — and family. His parents, younger siblings, and his daughter had all flown out to watch him. His family rang him a few days after the loss and reminded him what the whole thing meant beyond the result. A week later, strangers in Tokyo were asking for photographs. He started to see it differently.
"It's more than a result, it's the inspiration you give people," he said. Getting there required processing the tournament he'd spent years building toward, including Palace's Conference League final win over Rayo Vallecano in May — a match he watched from the stands after tearing ankle ligaments against Brentford in the penultimate league game of the season. He wasn't even sure he'd make the World Cup squad. He did, and America briefly became a country that cared about football.
What Palace need from him now
Richards started at FC Dallas, developed at Bayern Munich — he remembers learning the hard way to always play to Arjen Robben's left foot — and has matured into a leader at Palace. His defensive partners this season are Chadi Riad (23), Jaydee Canvot (20), Takehiro Tomiyasu and Axel Disasi. He's also been handed responsibility for teenage American winger Zavier Gozo.
The instability around him makes Palace difficult to pin down in any market. They've lost their best players every summer for years and found ways to stay competitive, largely on the strength of individual development. Richards is the continuity now. Whether that's enough to push Palace up the table — and deeper into Europe — depends on whether Sage can find a system that holds without the names that keep leaving.
Richards wants to win another European trophy. He wants a better league finish. He has a small collection of rubber chickens — Paxo Lacroix being the first, found on the Leipzig turf after the Conference League final — that he uses as good luck talismans, with names assigned based on the matches he takes them to.
"I think the name will find them at some point," he said. "Depending on which game I take them to. That's where they'll find their name."
