Chris Richards is talking about a pillowcase and a rubber chicken. They come from very different places – the suburbs of Alabama and a soccer field in eastern Germany – and they represent very different points in his life.
But both keepsakes have followed the USA defender on this World Cup adventure. And both help to tell the story of Richards’ journey to Seattle where, on Monday night, the United States face Belgium for a place in the quarterfinals.
First, the bedding. ‘The blankie that I was born with, I’ve turned it into a pillowcase,’ Richards explains. The center back grew up in Hoover, outside Birmingham, Alabama. Now 26, he reveals: ‘I always take that around with me.’
As for the chicken? It landed at Richards’ feet back in May, shortly after Crystal Palace beat Rayo Vallecano to win the Europa Conference League. The defender missed the final through injury but his ankle was sturdy enough to join in the celebrations.
‘It got thrown on the pitch and I’ve adopted it ever since,’ Richards tells the Daily Mail. ‘I’ve been taking it around everywhere… I hope the owner isn’t too mad at me!’
It is believed to have belonged to a couple of Palace fans, Kevin and Ben, who named it Paxo and took it around Europe. Another supporter claimed on social media that the chicken is called Dave ‘and he was kidnapped.’
They can rest assured that Paxo – or Dave – is alive and well: at the USMNT’s California base for this World Cup, Richards placed the rubber chicken atop a fridge in an area reserved for Mauricio Pochettino’s players.
USA and Crystal Palace’s Chris Richards has taken his lucky rubber chicken to the World Cup
Richards has played an integral role for the United States in defence so far at the tournament
‘It’s a bit beer stained now! I’m going to try to wash it,’ he says. But hotel staff aren’t allowed near Richards’ pillowcases. ‘No, no, no!’ he says. ‘I have a picture of me and my daughter walking on to Selhurst Park so that’s another pillow that I bring with me every time I leave home.’ They can’t go missing in the laundry.
Not when the defender is big on rituals and superstitions. ‘I do everything left footed first,’ Richards explains. ‘Left tape, right tape. Left sock, right sock. If I have a good game and I was wearing a certain pair of trainers before the game, I’m going to wear those for the next game.’
If you win a European final and a chicken lands nearby? ‘Keep it,’ he continues. ‘Even these two bracelets I have had on my wrists for four years now,’ Richards pulls back his sleeve. ‘I’ve never taken them off.’ They probably need a clean, too. ‘They definitely do!’
Who can blame Richards for sticking with what works for him? It has been a remarkable couple of years: he helped Palace win the FA Cup and the Conference League. Now he is at the heart of a defense that has anchored the USA’s run to the last 16 of the World Cup.
‘Some people can be content with winning things,’ Richards says. ‘I want to keep winning more. I want to keep making history – whether it’s for a club or country.’
He adds: ‘It’s been good to win stuff and to prove to the world that we do deserve to be here… but ultimately, I want to win this big trophy at the end of the summer. It’s going to take a lot of hard work. It’s going to take a lot of results. But I think we’ve shown so far in this tournament that we can definitely do that.’
There were fears that Pochettino’s team would be undone by its backline. But his first-choice defense – Richards, Tim Ream, Alex Freeman and Antonee Robinson – has conceded just one goal in three games. None of those four started the 3-2 defeat by Turkey.
But there have been times this summer when Richard and Co have had to dig in. In the last 32 against Bosnia and Herzegovina, for instance, Pochettino’s team lost Folarin Balogun to a red card with nearly half an hour to play. They held firm to keep another clean sheet.
‘My main role is to defend and I love doing that,’ Richards says. ‘I love tough tackles, I love shoulder to shoulders, I love headers, I love all that stuff… I grew my hair out so I could win some more headers or throw people off!’
The 26-year-old believes it’s ‘rare’ to have a backline who all love the grottier, grittier aspects of defending. ‘Sometimes you see players that maybe shy away from doing the dangerous stuff,’ he says.
Richards revels in ‘frustrating’ rival attackers, which is lucky because superstar forwards have taken over this tournament. Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland and Harry Kane are all tussling for the Golden Boot.
Richards and Co were forced to dig in against Bosnia & Herzegovina in the round of 32
Mauricio Pochettino’s in-form USA side are gearing up to face Belgium in the round of 16
‘I don’t fear any players,’ Richards says. ‘I’m really excited for those kind of duels.’
Since joining Palace from Bayern Munich in 2022, he has faced Haaland and many of the world’s deadliest strikers. Richards particularly relishes games against Liverpool’s Alexander Isak.
On Monday night in Seattle, he must keep out Romelu Lukaku, Kevin De Bruyne and Co. With victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina, the USMNT ended a 13-game winless run against European opposition that included 10 straight defeats.
Belgium would represent a first major European scalp for some time. ‘Maybe it’s our turn to start a new streak,’ Richards says. ‘Hopefully we can make some more history.’
That will be harder without Balogun. The striker has already scored three goals at this World Cup, leading from the front as the UMSNT has captured hearts across America.
The 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina had an average TV audience of nearly 25million people; Richards’ daughter, Luna, was recently watching Blippi – a children’s entertainer – when he gave her a shoutout. His family has ‘embraced’ the rubber chicken, even if the defender’s teammates are yet to be convinced. ‘I don’t think anybody really knows what it is,’ Richards says.
Should the USA go all the way, however, should this team do the impossible, is Paxo – or Dave – going to take pride of place next to a World Cup winners’ medal? ‘It will,’ Richards says. ‘He should definitely have his own medal!’
