Mat Sadler explains Rico Richards' absence for Walsall over festive period
Mat Sadler has confirmed that Walsall loanee Rico Richards has missed the past fortnight due to illness.
The 22-year-old, who is on loan from local rivals Port Vale, has featured just nine times for the Saddlers across all competitions this term.
Richards has played just 44 minutes across his four cameos from the bench in League Two, although he scored his first two goals for the club during a 2-1 win at Stevenage in the EFL Trophy on December 2.
He has not figured since the Saddlers' 1-1 draw against Shrewsbury in mid-December and Sadler has revealed Richards has been struck by illness over the festive period.
"Rico has not been well the past couple of weeks which is why he has not featured as well," boss Sadler said.
'We'll see' - Sadler on Dan Cox and Rico Richards' futures
Dan Cox, on loan from Derby County, is another young player who has struggled for minutes since arriving in the summer.
The Wales under-21 international has made just three appearances in League Two and seven across all competitions.
He started twice against Barnet and Grimsby in August and made his first league start since in a 1-0 win at Oldham Athletic on December 12.
When asked about whether Cox and Richards will remain at Bescot beyond January, Sadler revealed that conversations will take place to plan out the best course of action for the second half of the season.
"Dan played in the reverse game of this fixture [against Oldham].
"We've got to evaluate what we think is the best thing for them and how we want to see the squad into the second half of the season.
"We'll see. Loads of chats between everybody and it all comes into the melting pot of how we want it to look on January 31."
