USMNT defender Chris Richards suffers ankle injury as World Cup nears

When making a list of worst-case scenarios for the U.S. men's national team, an injury to Chris Richards would be high up there.

Richards is the bedrock of the USMNT back line and on Sunday, the Crystal Palace defender suffered an ankle injury in his team's 2-2 Premier League draw against Brentford.

The 26-year-old landed awkwardly after a 77th-minute collision with Brentford's Igor Thiago. Richards managed to stay in the game, but required assistance getting off the pitch after the final whistle.

Thankfully, per Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner, the injury didn't appear to be serious.

"He twisted his ankle. I think he got Thiago landing on his ankle and then it twisted," Glasner said in his post-game press conference.

"It's quite swollen, so we have to assess it further, but hopefully he can return in the midweek."

Still, the injury is a major worry for the USMNT with less than a month until the team kicks off a World Cup on home soil.

It is a bad news for Palace as well, with the club preparing to face Rayo Vallecano in the UEFA Conference League final on May 27.

Richards has been a lock starter for Palace all season, making 49 appearances across all competitions for the Eagles.

The Alabama native is also an unquestioned starter for USMNT boss Mauricio Pochettino. Richards has earned 36 caps during his international career thus far.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Chris Richards injury: USMNT defender hurt as World Cup approaches