Chris Richards looking to bring Bayern’s winning mentality to Crystal Palace – American discusses first Premier League start

BY EDMUND BRACK AND ANDREW MCSTEEN

Chris Richards is hoping that he can bring a winning mentality from Bayern Munich to Crystal Palace.

The American defender, 22, made his first Premier League start for the Eagles in Wednesday’s night’s 1-1 draw with Manchester United.

Richards left the 31-time Bundesliga winners in the summer for a fee in the region of £10million, signing a five-year deal with the Eagles.

Richards made 10 appearances for Bayern, winning a UEFA Super Cup and three German league titles. He also played in the Champions League for the Bavarians.

“It’s kind of a winning mentality,” said Richards, when asked what he can bring from the Allianz Arena to Selhurst Park. “At Bayern you’re expected to win every game – you’re expected to be at 100 per cent all the time.

“I’m not saying here you’re not. But it’s just a matter of bringing what I’ve learned from Bayern and then trying to bring it here and not just improve my mentality but also improve the team’s mentality with giving 100 per cent every day.

“The Premier League is the best league in the world. I feel like I did really well in the Bundesliga and enough to draw attention from Palace. I figured why not test myself in the best league possible in order to become the best player possible? That was the thinking behind my move here.”

Richards had made four substitute appearances in the league before the Red Devils’ visit to SE25 but suffered a hamstring injury in September, limiting his

Crystal Palace game time and ruling him out of the USA squad for the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

“I became healthy right towards the end of the group stages [of the World Cup],” said Richards.

“I wouldn’t have been able to give 100 per cent to the team. As selfish as I wanted to be with going, I had to put my pride aside and let the boys go.

“It was mixed emotions because I wanted to be there so bad. It was very disappointing. It’s something I’ve looked forward to ever since I was young.

“On the one hand, it was a little bit sad. But it was these guys who I built great relationships with, and they were playing for our nation. So, in that sense, I was a great supporter.

“I’m looking forward to 2026 [USA, Mexico and Canada] now.”

Richards made four clearances, completed four tackles and won two aerial battles during his 90 minutes against United.

His centre-back partner Marc Guehi made eight clearances and also won two aerial battles.

“We know how much quality United have,” explained Richards of Erik ten Hag’s side. “We took it on the chin, and we just had to do our job to make sure that we tried to get a point out of tonight.

 “Even though they’re an amazing team and they play really well and move the ball really well, as a team, we stayed very compact and tried to hold them to as few shots as possible.”

The Eagles face Newcastle United – fourth in the Premier League – on Saturday at Selhurst Park.

“It’s another big game – hopefully we can get a good result,” added Richards.

“From the performance tonight, just bring it to the game on Saturday and hopefully get at least a point, hopefully three.”

PICTURES: KEITH GILLARD