It may not look like it, but Chris Richards is still getting used to what he affectionately calls "adult men's football."

On the surface, Richards, who is 6'2" tall, does look like an adult. He has played for Bayern Munich, one of the best teams in the world, several times. He has started to play for The U.S. men's team plays for the national team, helping to ensure a key point on the road to qualifying for the World Cup.

But when you talk to him, you quickly realize that Richards is not actually an adult yet—at least not yet. He was still smiling, like a kid enjoying a journey he had never thought of.

Take his memories of USMNT fans as an example. These days, Richards finds himself in competition with John Brooks and Miles Robinson as one of USMNT's starting central defenders.

Despite his age and his relative inexperience, Richards has attracted the attention of almost everyone who follows American football because he can and should be the team's next breakthrough star.

However, just a few short years ago, he was a teenager and regarded Brooks as his role model on the court.

"I watched John [Brooks] score the winning goal in the 2014 World Cup against Ghana," he said with a smile, referring to the Wolfsburg defender, who is now both a club-level opponent and the United States. Teammate

"I saw him when I was 14 years old, and now I can play with him. It's really cool to experience with him and play with him."

It has been seven years since 14-year-old Chris Richards witnessed the 21-year-old Brooks score the goal in a game against Ghana. In these seven years, Richards' career has developed faster than he expected.

Chris Richards assisted Robert Lewandowski to score! pic.twitter.com/63h4AwA3m2

Richards, who was born in Alabama, did not grow up on the local football team. There is no Atlanta United in MLS, and there is no Birmingham Legion in USL. The local football is American, and Crimson Tide has the upper hand.

Moreover, when he first tried to join FC Dallas Academy, he was rejected, which almost convinced him that football might not develop as he hoped.

"You think it's almost impossible for you," he said. "I'm just a little satisfied with going the college route, maybe I can get into the draft or something."

The result is not so. By the age of 18, Richards made a deep impression during the 10-day trial. From then on, Richards' life began to run at speed.

At only 21 years old, he has played 10 times for the German championship team. He has played in the center and on the right, and he has never played the latter before being pushed to Bayern. He had assisted Robert Lewandowski. Lifted three trophies, played in the Bundesliga and the Champions League.

Not bad for the children in Birmingham, right?

But at Bayern, not bad is not good enough. So Richards was loaned to Hoffenheim at the end of last season, hoping to make his game from good to great. This summer, he chose to return to Hoffenheim to continue this development, so that one day he can enter Bayern's plan permanently.

"At the time we had five central defenders," Richards said. "If I were not one of the first two or three, then I would have been waiting. In the past few months, I had "they respect me They knew that it was the best not only for me but also for them, because I hope to finish 30 games. "

He said that Richards, who has played eight times this season, has maintained continuous contact with Julian Nagelsman and his staff.

In Hoffenheim, he found a club that could give him a real test of the Bundesliga. The forward he faces is not only in training, but also in the legal battle on the match day, all have the ability to bully him and have the ability to defeat him. 

"This is a machine," he said of Bayern. "When you get there, they hope you can adapt right away. At first, it was an adjustment because you have to move to a place you have never been before and speak a different language.

"You will not go to a team that has performed well or succeeded in the past few years; you will enter a team that is almost always successful and will continue to be successful for as long as possible.

"They expect perfection and you have to do it every day. They don't care if you are 15, 16 or 19 years old. If you want to train and play with the first team, they want you to be perfect."

"I'm only 21 years old," Richards continued. "I have been playing in the First Division for about seven months, so of course, I'm still getting used to it, just a little used to everything in the league.

"This is adult men's football. You have to learn how to play against adult men who may be 10, 12, or 13 years older than you. I won't say that I have fully adapted it, because I think you can always learn and get better. Especially as a central defender. We won’t be at our peak until we are in our 20s."

Richards is still a few years away from his 20s, but he is already a player that USMNT may be prepared to rely on at important moments in the future.

So far, he has only won four blocks because Greg Berhalt allowed Richards to enter the team easily. But last month, when facing his biggest test to date, Richards survived being thrown into the fire.

Together with the young Robinson, Richards was selected as the starting lineup of USMNT against a very good Costa Rica team. The US team only conceded a goal in one minute, but remained firm in the next 89 games as they took a step towards Qatar 2022 with a score of 2-1.

This is not Richards' perfect performance. He missed a tackle that might have been a penalty and struggled in the air. But he also showed every feature that makes his followers so excited: passing, range, confidence, ability to read the game.

As the United States prepares to play against Mexico and Jamaica in the coming days, Richards may play an important role. Due to the recent poor form, Brooks was excluded from the team, allowing Richards to become central defenders with Robinson, Mark McKenzie and Walker Zimmerman.

This is a team without that much experience, but Richards is ready to play his part when he is asked to participate in another big game.

"I want to qualify for the World Cup, especially after the last cycle of our national team. Of course, watching it, you never want it to happen again, especially the group of people we have.

"We want to qualify, we want to beat Mexico in the upcoming window. This is something we keep on the calendar."

After the international game day, Richards will return to Hoffenheim to continue to 30 games.

He will get those times, those experiences, those moments. Moreover, when he returns to Bayern next summer, he plans to become a better player than when he left.

"Last year, I just broke into the door," Richards said. "Then this year, I will spend 12 months in a club that trusts me. Spent a strong Serie A under his belt... Now it’s time to rock!"

"I think if I continue to do what I should do here and I continue to develop, I don’t understand why I can’t promote [Niklas] Sule, [Benjamin] Pavard, [Lucas] Hernandez, [Dayot] Upamecano, among these people Any one," he added.

"Of course, say one thing, do one thing, I have a lot of work to do, but I think if I continue to do what I am doing and really show myself before next summer, everything is possible."

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