Richards is not allowed to fly back to England from his holiday in Cyprus after catching the virus.
The 21-year-old told The Sun: “At first I thought it was a really bad chest infection, or maybe alcohol poisoning.
“I felt so weak that I couldn’t move or eat.
“My friends had to bring me drinks in bed.
“When I was told I had swine flu all sorts of things started going through my mind. You see on the news people dying of it.”
He added: “My club have been very understanding.
“I’ll get some stick from the lads when I do return – they will probably all turn up to training in surgical masks.”
