Crystal Palace agree deal with Bayern for Chris Richards

Bayern Munich has just signed Matthijs de Ligt from Juventus and this has paved the way for Chris Richards to depart the club.

BBC Sport has revealed that “Crystal Palace have agreed a fee of €10m (£8.5m) plus €3 (£2.5m) in add-ons for Bayern Munich defender Chris Richards.”

The defender spent last season on loan at Hoffenheim where he made 19 appearances in the Bundesliga scoring one goal. The Daily Mail had reported, “Richards also had a fresh offer from Hoffenheim but is keen to join Palace.”

Who is Crystal Palace-bound Chris Richards?

Richards was born in Birmingham, Alabama and came through the academies of Texans SC Houston and FC Dallas before joining Bayern Munich on loan in 2019.

After impressing for Bayern’s U19s this move was made permanent the following year. He made 37 appearances for Bayern II scoring four goals and winning the 3. Liga (Germany’s third division).

He made his Bundesliga debut in 2020 but has since only made five appearances for the club in the competition. He has played German top-flight football for Hoffenheim where he has made 30 appearances in total across two loan spells.

The USA international has also made three appearances for Bayern in the Champions League and has played twice in the Europa League for Hoffenheim.

Richards eyes USMNT World Cup selection

With the signing of de Ligt, the player must feel the time is right for him to leave Bayern permanently to secure the valuable first-team action he needs. He is only 22 and already has eight senior caps.

The World Cup in Qatar is this year and the USA is in a group alongside England, Wales and Iran. If he is to join Palace he may come up against a possible future teammate in Marc Guehi at the tournament.

It would be a smart move to join a club where he can play regularly to make sure he is part of Gregg Berhalter’s plans for the tournament.

Crystal Palace are in need of a centre-back as at the moment they only have Guehi, James Tomkins, and Joachim Anderson in that position. Last season Cheikhou Kouyaté who is naturally a midfielder had to fill in in the centre of defence regularly.

Chris Richards the latest addition to Vieira’s project

Patrick Vieira, who has managed in the USA with New York City FC, has enjoyed a successful rebuild of Palace after taking over from Roy Hodgson.

The Frenchman guided Palace to a 12th place finish in the Premier League last season after a summer which included a high turnover of the squad.

Playing in the Premier League would be a step up from the Bundesliga. However, he has experience playing against Erling Haaland in that division and has played and trained alongside Robert Lewandowski. These are two of the best strikers in World football and an experience that will no doubt help him in the English top-flight.

The young player needs regular first-team football which he is much more likely to get at Palace than at Bayern Munich. Leaving a club of Bayern’s size would be tough especially as Richards has been there for four years but it is one he must do for the sake of his career.