Chris Richards to Crystal Palace is finally official, as the South London outfit has announced the arrival of their new United States men’s national team defender on a five-year deal.
The Alabama-born Richards, 22, started with FC Dallas’ academy and transferred to Bayern Munich at 18.
[ ANALYSIS: Stats say Richards is primed to shine for Palace ]
Richards rose through the ranks at Bayern, starting with their 3.Liga team before debuting for the first team in the 2019-20 season. Two year-long loans to Hoffenheim followed, but Palace leapt into the fray to take his signature this summer.
“I grew up watching the Premier League and grew up of course watching [Wilfried] Zaha, so it’ll be cool to spend some time on the field with them [the Palace players] and be a part of this historic club. I’m really excited for it.
“The kind of project I’ve seen [attracted me]. It’s a lot of young players but also young players who have a lot of fight. Palace is a club that seems like they’re always fighting.”
[ VIDEO: Transfer chat: USMNT players potentially on the move this summer ]
We learned that the Jason Sudeikis vehicle “Ted Lasso” has become the go-to American soccer banter in England, with Jesse Marsch’s arrival at Leeds and Chris Armas’ time as an assistant at Manchester United last season drawing comparisons to the show.
Palace announced Richards’ arrival with a pleasant Lasso-style video, complete with music “definitely not by Mumford and Sons.”
#Believe. #CPFC pic.twitter.com/yWBqdH9USa
— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) July 27, 2022
