For most of 90 sleepy minutes Thursday night in Austin, Texas, a U.S. men’s national team littered with reserves probed and plodded. In their second Gold Cup group stage match, against a Saudi Arabia B-team, a makeshift squad of American fringe players suggested that they aren’t quite ready for the international level. But in the 31st and 63rd minutes, one of a few exceptions, Chris Richards, saved the day — and showed why he’s a nailed-on World Cup starter.
First, at the end of a 30-yard lung-busting sprint, Richards kept the U.S. goal unscathed in heroic fashion, with a lunging block.
And then, with the game droning toward a 0-0 draw, he scored its only goal off a set piece:
The 1-0 win sent the U.S. through to the Gold Cup quarterfinals, likely atop Group D. There, in the knockout rounds, is where the fun — and the tougher tests — will begin, either against Costa Rica or Mexico.
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Here, in the group stage, was an opportunity for this depleted USMNT to put a rough pre-Gold Cup stretch behind them. But on Sunday, for the most part, they thudded back down to underwhelming levels.
The USMNT rode comfortably into Q2 stadium, having relieved pressure and quieted noise with a 5-0 win over Trinidad and Tobago in its opener.
Then it played comfortably. And for about 15 or 20 minutes, that was a good thing. It bossed possession, snuffed out all Saudi threats in transition, and established its attacking shape high up the field.
But, once in that shape, the Americans did nothing. They were too slow, too safe, too predictable — with their passing and off-ball movement. They were too narrow, and the two players who did spend most of the first half wide — Max Arfsten and Jack McGlynn — did nothing incisive or creative. (They are, after all, a fullback and a central midfielder, respectively.)
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They raised questions about head coach Mauricio Pochettino’s game model. But when Pochettino looked down the bench to find someone who could inject life into the U.S. attack, he saw … Brenden Aaronson, Paxten Aaronson and Quinn Sullivan. He typically has two international-level wingers, Christian Pulisic and Tim Weah, but one of the two is resting; the other is with Juventus at the Club World Cup (and, last night, the White House).
So there was hardly any vertical running. There was hardly any purposeful dribbling or passing. Through 40 minutes, the U.S. had just one shot, none on target, and 0.03 Expected Goals.
And eventually, Saudi Arabia took advantage of the USMNT’s blandness. It broke out into a few counterattacks. In the 31st minute, the U.S. left Abdulrahman Al Obud all alone on the left wing. He strode into the box, and into a shot, which was blocked by a flying Richards.
Patrick Agyemang finally registered the USMNT’s first shot on target, with a tame header. But for the most part, he was sloppy. Neither Malik Tillman nor Diego Luna could really get into the game. The teams went to halftime at 0-0.
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Eight minutes into the second half, Richards got free on a corner, but nodded his header right down the goalkeeper’s gut.
A few minutes later, Saudi Arabia carved up the U.S. on a counter, and struck the crossbar — though the offside flag was up.
And a few minutes after that, Richards delivered. He latched onto Sebastian Berhalter’s inswinging free kick. He airplaned away in celebration.
Of the 11 starters on Thursday — Matt Freese, Richards, Tim Ream, Arfsten, Alex Freeman, Berhalter, Luca de la Torre, Luna, Tillman, McGlynn, Agyemang — he is the only World Cup lock. And after an impressive season at Crystal Palace in England, he is one of the few U.S. players rising toward their unmissable moment in 2026.
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