The United States’ men’s national team already has a major injury question mark before the 2026 FIFA World Cup even kicks off.

Chris Richards, the 26-year-old who many believe is the best defender on the USMNT heading into the tournament, won’t be traveling for the team’s international friendly against Senegal on Sunday.

Manager Mauricio Pochettino said that Richards is dealing with an ankle injury that has kept him out of Crystal Palace’s last two matches of the season. And even worse for fans, there’s currently no public timetable for his return.

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“I think he needs to keep doing his rehab,” Pochettino said, per the New York Post. “I think it’s much better to stay here and plan to train and [see] next week how it is.”

The “here” Pochettino speaks of is the USMNT training facility in Atlanta, which is where Richards is staying while his teammates head to Charlotte, North Carolina, for their matchup with Senegal.

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Richards also wasn’t present for the team’s 26-man roster reveal in New York City last week, sending a video message instead as he stayed with Crystal Palace for its European final match in Germany. He didn’t play in the match despite being available as a sub.

Richards has yet to train with the USMNT, and Pochettino didn’t appear too optimistic he would be ready for the team’s first match against Paraguay on June 12 in Los Angeles.

“I was asking from yesterday when he arrived to [assistant coach] Jesús [Pérez] 100 times, ‘What do you think, what do you think, which formation we have'” Pochettino explained. “Wait, wait, wait, wait. The answer was ‘Wait, wait, wait.’ It’s too early. We need to see. The next few days are going to be key to see the possibilities to be ready or not for the World Cup.”

While it’s not expected Richards will be taken off the roster, FIFA requires all 48 teams to finalize their 26-man squads by June. Teams can still make injury-related roster changes up to 24 hours before their first match.

The USMNT will try to get their chemistry and technical skills in check against Senegal, while also facing Germany in a pre-World Cup friendly before heading to Los Angeles for the start of their Group D schedule.

After Paraguay, the U.S. will have Australia in Seattle on June 19, followed by Türkiye in their final group stage match on June 25 back at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.

But a significant question mark remains at one of the most important positions on the field for the USMNT: center back. Richards is a natural fit there, but the depth behind him is far less convincing, even after Pochettino sacrificed some attacking options to bolster the defense on his roster.

Richards was expected to start every match for the U.S. even before the roster was finalized, so it will be interesting to see how his injury progresses closer to the first match on June 12.

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