All posts by h716a5.icu

Brain Evans, universally known as Ginger, a fast bowler for Glamorgan who went on to became a major force in Minor Counties cricket, has died at the age of 74

ESPNcricinfo staff17-May-2011Brain Evans, universally known as Ginger, a fast bowler for Glamorgan who went on to became a major force in Minor Counties cricket, died earlier this month at the age of 74.His 2nd XI debut for Glamorgan came as a 17-year-old in 1953 and he also made a name in South Wales club cricket, but he had to wait five years for his first county appearance. In 1960 and 1961 he took 82 and 87 wickets and briefly formed a dangerous new-ball pairing with Jeff Jones. But his career was blighted by injury issues which ultimately forced him to retire early in the 1964 season.Evans subsequently played for Lincolnshire, helping them win the Minor Counties Championship in 1966. He was a professional for Ross Sports Group in Grimsby until 1971.Even when he quit playing he retained his close links with the game as an umpire, a county official in Lincolnshire, and as groundsman at Ross Sports Group.In all he took 251 wickets at 27.04 in 88 matches, with a career best of 8 for 42 against Somerset in 1961. He also scored 1535 runs at 13.70.

If the Indians thought they had hit rock bottom on the opening day, they were in for the most unbelievable of shocks as they crashed through that bottom and continued their free-fall

The Bulletin by George Binoy18-Dec-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
AB de Villiers was a man in a hurry, and scored South Africa’s fastest ever Test century•Getty ImagesSouth Africa’s powerful performance during the first half of the third day added so much ground to the territory captured on the previous two that the dominance of India’s openers for 29 overs, their half-centuries and three dropped catches made no dent in the home team’s ironclad prospects of taking a 1-0 lead in the series.If India thought they had already hit rock bottom, they were in for the most unbelievable shock as they crashed through that and continued to free-fall. Their bowling was toothless, and South Africa infinitely more ruthless. Under blue skies in Centurion, AB de Villiers pulverised the featherweight attack like a heavyweight might, and scored a hundred in under two hours. South Africa’s lead swelled by 225 runs in 36 overs before lunch and Jacques Kallis reached his maiden double-century soon after the break. Graeme Smith declared shortly after on 620 for 4 – when de Villiers fell – with a monstrous lead of 484.In cloudier weather, Virender Sehwag and Gambhir gave India a modicum of respite by surviving the new ball and scoring briskly. Their partnership was worth 137, but the battle was for longevity and both batsmen lost it. Their dismissals left India with eight wickets in hand and two days to survive. They’ll need a batting performance without precedent, and perhaps substantial rain as well.That India were attempting to avoid an innings defeat so early was because their bowlers were helpless in the morning: unable to make a breakthrough, unable to control the run-rate, unable to do anything to help their cause. Ishant Sharma was gifted a wicket but de Villiers seamlessly picked up where Hashim Amla left off. His 76-ball century was the quickest by a South African. Kallis, who until today averaged about 14 after resuming on an overnight century, added plenty more.The maiden over de Villiers played out against Jaidev Unadkat soon after he came in – on 396 for 3 – was the lull before the hurricane. His first forceful shot was the straightest of drives, bisecting the gap between Ishant on his follow-through and the stumps. de Villiers then executed the plan to target Harbhajan Singh to perfection. He stepped out to the offspinner’s first delivery, but had to readjust to a fuller length and squirt it through point. In Harbhajan’s next over, de Villiers nimbly got down on one knee and launched the ball over deep square leg. Soon he was reverse-sweeping and his aggression rubbed off on Kallis, who had been restrained for the first hour.The century partnership came when de Villiers danced towards Suresh Raina and caused some of the fans on the grass banks at wide long-on to rush to catch the ball. Two more consecutive sixes off Raina, a muscular pull and a slog-sweep, took de Villiers to his century. Kallis helped himself against Raina’s long-hops as well and also dismissed Sachin Tendulkar over deep midwicket.Smart Stats

South Africa’s total of 620 for 4 is their sixth-best in Tests, and their highest against India.

South Africa’s first-innings lead of 484 is their second-highest in Tests. The only occasion they managed a higher lead was against England at Lord’s in 2003, when they took a lead of 509 and eventually won by an innings and 92 runs.

For India too, it’s their second-highest first-innings deficit: they’d fallen behind by 490 runs against West Indies at Eden Gardens in 1958-59.

AB de Villiers’ 75-ball century is the tenth-fastest in all Tests, and the quickest by a South African.

Jacques Kallis’ unbeaten 201 lifts his overall average against India to 67.78, with four centuries in 14 Tests. At home, he averages 88 against India.

The 224-run stand between Kallis and de Villiers is South Africa’s second-highest for the fourth wicket, and their best against India.

Kallis’ 230-run partnership with Hashim Amla is the second time they’d added more than 200 against India in 2010: in February, they’d put together 340 in Nagpur.

The Amla-Kallis and Kallis-de Villiers pairs are among the top five pairs in terms of runs scored for South Africa.

India were using part-timers because the form of the specialists left MS Dhoni with few options. After the battering on the second day, India were desperate for a stronger start, and Sreesanth began with a no-ball, complementing his first-ball wide yesterday. Ishant was better but one of his fielding efforts was indicative of India’s morale. Sreesanth had delivered a short ball, Amla had pulled, and Ishant, having just completed an over, jogged along the boundary and made no effort to save the four. Some Indians glared at him, but no one’s performances lifted.Smith might have declared at lunch but Kallis was 18 short of a double-hundred. He got there by glancing Jaidev Unadkat to fine leg to spark off tumultuous applause at SuperSport Park. de Villiers was celebrating for his partner with arms aloft, and the South Africans in the dressing room clapped vigorously. Kallis took off his helmet, revealing his flushed face and full shock of hair, and raised his arms aloft. He had flung that monkey off his back after 142 Tests and his fans cheered for longer than usual.The pitch had certainly eased for even Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel were unable to extract as much assistance from it on the third day. Their pace and bounce made a difference though. Gambhir was hit on his glove and thigh off successive short balls from Morkel, but grew more assured once he survived that period.Sehwag, bristling after his first-innings duck, slashed and drove repeatedly square on the off side, even though several fielders were waiting for the catch. Smith brought Tsotsobe into the attack in the eighth over and Sehwag blazed his second ball over wide long-on for six and the fourth over point. He continued to attack Tsotsobe but one powerful but airy drive was dropped by Amla at short cover. The chance was extremely difficult and Sehwag was on 34.With few men protecting the boundary on a fast outfield, Sehwag and Gambhir got terrific value for their shots and scored at around six an over. On 43 and 62, Gambhir was put down by Alviro Petersen at point. Sehwag, however, skied Paul Harris to Smith at deep cover, and Gambhir was lbw to one that kept low from Steyn. Those blows before the light faded in Centurion tightened South Africa’s vice-like grip on the Test.

Wolverhampton Wanderers are reportedly interested in signing Barcelona midfielder Nico Gonzalez this summer, according to a report from Spanish outlet Sport (via Sport Witness). 

The lowdown: Rising star

A graduate of the famous La Masia academy in Catalonia, Gonzalez has amassed 78 appearances across all levels for the Spanish giants.

Following a La Liga debut under Ronald Koeman in a 4-2 victory over Real Sociedad, the 20-year-old has made 37 outings for the senior side and has quickly become a regular feature under club legend Xavi.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/all-the-latest-from-wolves-6/” title=”All the latest from Wolves!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

However, despite an apparent emergence into the big time, the Spanish sensation could be set to depart the Camp Nou already…

The latest: Wanderers ‘very interested’

As per Sport, translated by SW, Wolves are believed to be ‘very interested’ in the three-cap Spanish Under 21 starlet.

It’s claimed that there is uncertainty about Gonzalez’s future in Spain as the club holds an ‘internal debate’ on whether or not to cash in this summer.

The report states that super-agent Jorge Mendes, who has close connections with Molineux, is involved in the dealings for the midfielder hailed by Barcelona icon Andres Iniesta as possessing ‘brutal talent’.

The verdict: Star signing

So far this season, Gonzalez has scored twice and provided two assists in 37 appearances across all competitions for Barca, earning a stylistic comparison to the likes of Borussia Dortmund superstar Jude Bellingham, Manchester City ace Bernado Silva and highly-rated Barcelona teammate Pedri (FBref).

Predominantly operating as a box-to-box central midfielder, the Spaniard can also play in a deeper-lying role as well as in wide positions, levels of versatility that would be a welcome addition to Bruno Lage’s squad.

Whilst the future of Ruben Neves remains in the balance amidst interest from Barcelona and beyond, Wolves should certainly remain attentive to the possibility of signing Gonzalez regardless.

In other news, Wolves have been backed to sign a Premier League attacker this summer. Find out who it is here.

Danish Kaneria, the Pakistan legspinner, has been released without charge by police after being arrested in connection with alleged spot-fixing during an English domestic Pro40 match last season

Cricinfo staff08-Sep-2010Danish Kaneria, the Pakistan legspinner, has been released without charge by police after being arrested in connection with alleged spot-fixing during an English domestic Pro40 match last season. Kaneria was arrested in May, along with Essex team-mate Mervyn Westfield, and released on bail without charge pending further inquiries.”Essex police can confirm that a 29-year-old man from Chelmsford has been released from bail in connection with an investigation into cricket-match irregularities. A 22-year-old man, also from Chelmsford, remains on bail until 15 September,” said a police statement.It is believed the investigation centred on a Pro40 win against Durham last September and spot-betting regarding wides and no-balls bowled in the match.Kaneria began the 2010 season as Essex’s overseas player before joining the Pakistan squad, but after he was dropped following the first Test against England, at Trent Bridge, he was resigned by the county and played in the Friends Provident t20 final. However, Westfield was released by Essex last month.Spot-fixing has hit the headlines again in recent weeks following the investigation against Pakistan which came to light during the final Test against England at Lord’s. It has led to Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir – the three players allegedly at the centre of the controversy – being suspended by ICC.

Australia’s Test team convened without Ricky Ponting in Hobart on Monday evening

Daniel Brettig10-Dec-2012Australia’s Test team convened without Ricky Ponting in Hobart on Monday evening. Barring reasons of injury or personal leave, this is the first time such a state of affairs has existed since 1999.The space left by Ponting will be felt as much in the dressing room as out in the middle, for while his run-making trailed off badly towards the end, his contribution to the team’s development as a mentor and example was seldom stronger.Phillip Hughes occupies Ponting’s place on the team sheet, but all will be expected to take up the considerable hole left by his presence. Apart from the captain Michael Clarke, the most senior members of the squad to play at Bellerive are Michael Hussey, Shane Watson and Mitchell Johnson.Their insights and examples will be critical to younger team-mates, and so too will the personal experience of Ed Cowan. Having benefited greatly from the time he spent around Ponting both before and after his elevation to the national team, Cowan will now be expected to show that example.”It’s an odd situation in that one of the guys that has been inked into the top order, but more so inked into the culture of the change room, will be missing,” Cowan told ESPNcricinfo. “So there are two ways to look at it. One is to reminisce and think what a hole he’s going to leave. The other side of the coin is that it’s an opportunity for guys to step up, not only as players but as leaders around the change room, and that’s an opportunity for a number of guys to combine together and try to fill the void of his presence.”I think cultures evolve, and the culture of this team has evolved since Michael’s taken the captaincy, so it’s a question of guys being willing like Ricky was to give of themselves to the team like no other. Put the team first, play to win, and make sure the change rooms are a better place when the next person steps into it. A massive loss off the field, but the identity of this team has been growing since Michael took over the captaincy, and that growth’s been pretty evident in the results.”That those results did not culminate in a series victory over South Africa was down to a major malfunction at Nos. 3 and 4 in the batting order – of which Ponting was of course a part – the toll of three Tests on the hosts’ bowlers, and the resilience of the seasoned visitors. Cowan enjoyed a productive series personally, making his first Test century and looking comfortable at other times, but the most resounding lessons of the series were of the five-day game’s unremitting nature.”From a team point of view it was a great lesson that Test series are exactly that,” Cowan said. “It’s not one or two days of really decent cricket, to beat the best you have to be consistent for 15 days. As a group we felt as though we dominated them for eight or nine days of the series, maybe had points decisions on two or three days and only lost two or three days to them, and you end up losing the series. So it was a great lesson for us that the great teams soak up pressure when they have to and have an ability to really nail you when they have that momentum.”They were due to have a good day. That was in the back of everyone’s mind that they’d been pounded and pounded and pounded and yet it showed 0-0, and it took a toll on our bowlers a bit more with both quicks sitting out [Perth]. So we were up against it when our top three quicks were all unavailable for what was a grand final, so it was always going to be hard work. We had our opportunity after day one with the bat to really nail them and we didn’t take it, then with the ball we let things slip, and in a matter of hours the series was prettymuch gone.”Having said that, deep down we knew we gave it a massive shake. The best team in the world had come here with the intention of proving how good they were, and we flexed a few muscles and showed how good we were over the course of the series, but didn’t come away with the biscuits.”Ponting’s retirement and its associated melancholy appeared to add a mental toll to the physical strain evident after the sapping conclusion to the Adelaide Test. Cowan said the start of a new series would allow the start of a new and fresh chapter, without anything like the pathos that enveloped Australia at the WACA ground – there will certainly be fewer tears shed this week, both in private and in public.”It was tough mentally, and physically because it was a back-to-back Test,” Cowan said. “Now we’ve had a chance to refresh, take stock and move forward. Phil Hughes is coming into the side off a lot of runs and we’re pretty confident that everyone can contribute to the team moving forward. We’re now missing Australia’s greatest modern batsmen, but it’s an opportunity for guys to step up. It puts expectation on other guys to fill the void. That’s the only way.”

Dougie Brown admitted that the elevation of Ashley Giles to England’s one-day coach had created an opportunity for him at “a perfect moment” in his own career.

Jon Culley 31-Jan-2013Dougie Brown, who has succeeded Ashley Giles as Warwickshire’s director of cricket, admitted that the elevation of his predecessor to England’s one-day coach had created an opportunity for him at “a perfect moment” in his own career.Brown landed the job from a field of more than 40 applicants that chief executive Colin Povey confirmed included the current West Indies coach, Ottis Gibson. He said he was beginning to take notice of vacancies elsewhere when the departure of Giles offered the unexpected chance of promotion at Edgbaston.”I wasn’t about to jump ship,” he said. “But I have made no secret of the fact that I have ambitions to cut my teeth at the next level up. There are only a certain number of director of cricket roles that come up and I would be lying if I was not looking at what was available.”But if you are going elsewhere without experience you are always fighting against internal candidates, which seems to be the preferred way of doing things. So this came at a perfect time for me in my career.”Brown, who made his debut as a Warwickshire player in 1992 and had been working as assistant coach and academy director under Giles, inherits a team that won the County Championship in 2012, reached the final of the Clydesdale Bank 40 and was denied progression in the Friends Life T20, it could be argued, only because of the weather.That presents an unusual situation for a newly appointed head coach and Brown acknowledges that his approach to the job will have to reflect that, namely by resisting any urge to bring his own stamp to the job by making substantial changes.”It is unusual in that in the majority of cases a new director of cricket comes in because the previous one was not up to much and clearly that was not the case,” he said. “People wanting success again and again creates its own pressure but I have inherited a side with a great age profile who are very much driven towards improvement.”I think we know the strengths and qualities that won us the title. We know what we are good at doing, we know our values, we try to make sure that every day we give our full attention to what we set out to give our full attention to. Consistency was one of the key reasons we have been successful.”There are areas we need to improve on, especially in T20. But for the time being there is no necessity to change. We want to be slicker, smarter, more efficient but we don’t need to change much.”Apart from Gibson and the England fast bowling coach David Saker, Brown prevailed over a candidates list that also included Graeme Welch, Warwickshire’s fast bowling coach and a popular figure with many of the players. Welch remains on the coaching staff as assistant to his former colleague and Brown admitted the situation had not been without difficulty.”It has been difficult doing the day job in the circumstances,” Brown said. “We knew that one or both of us would be disappointed and I will not pretend that ‘Pop’ is not very disappointed not to have landed the job.”We had a chat yesterday and today. He is a very professional guy and is very clear what his job is and how we take the situation forward. There is nothing different in our relationship now compared with before the process started.”He is an outstanding bowling coach and someone I know very well having played with him all through my career. We have seen evidence of his work being very successful in the last couple of years and I hope that success continues.”I think the players have been incredibly mature. Thing have meandered a little lately with the players desperate for a bit of direction and you can see evidence of relief in the dressing room that we now know where we are going.”Povey was keen to emphasise Welch’s importance to Warwickshire and expressed a hope that the disappointment would not affect his commitment and loyalty.”‘Pop’ was interviewed and made a very good presentation but at the end of the day there was only one job,” he said. “We have changed his title to assistant coach to reflect the fact that his influence is much wider than just bowling coach.”He is disappointed but he is a guy like Dougie who is Warwickshire through and through and who puts the team first and I hope he will feel he can carry on as before, helping us lead the team.”Povey denied the story that Saker had been offered the job, in which Saker claimed he was misquoted. On Gibson and Saker, Povey said: “If I was in the position of coming to the end of my contract, I think I would take a look around the market and see what was available as well. But David was not offered the job, nor was anyone else before Dougie.”

Newcastle United have held talks with the agent of Rangers teenager Alex Lowry, according to Football Insider.

The Lowdown: Lowry profiled

Lowry is 18 years of age and is primarily an attacking midfielder who can also play as a right-winger or even in a deeper midfield role.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/newcastle-news-5/” title=”Newcastle news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Scot has already made four senior appearances for Rangers, scoring once and providing one assist. Former Ibrox boss Graeme Murty labelled Lowry’s self-confidence as ‘remarkable’, with reports back in February suggesting the teenager has turned down a three-and-a-half-year deal at Ibrox.

His current contract expires in 2023, and it looks as if Newcastle are now leading the race for his services.

The Latest: Hotel meeting

Football Insider shared an update regarding Lowry and Newcastle on Monday morning after being informed by a recruitment source.

They claimed that head of recruitment Steve Nickson met Lowry’s agent in a hotel prior to Newcastle’s Premier League win over Wolves earlier this month.

The report stated that the Magpies are at the front of the queue for the Rangers youngster, who also has interest elsewhere.

The Verdict: Shrewd move

It looks as if Lowry could be a future star with a number of top-tier sides keen on his services, so Newcastle’s decision to meet with his agent and outline their plans could turn out to be a shrewd move.

It would be interesting to see what Newcastle would do with Lowry, should a move to St. James’ Park go through. He already has senior experience in Scotland, and with Eddie Howe having just two attacking midfielders on the books, it could present an opportunity for Lowry to flirt between the club’s Under-23 ranks and first-team squad.

A clear pathway through to first-team football should be outlined by the Magpies, so it looks as if this could be a transfer to watch closely.

In other news: Newcastle now want to sign ’emerging superstar’ for Howe; Staveley has already spoken with agent. 

West Ham have had a club-record bid rejected for Leeds midfielder Kalvin Phillips, according to The Telegraph.

The Lowdown: Preparing for Rice’s departure?

West Ham have received vast interest surrounding the possibility of a transfer for Declan Rice. According to SofaScore, Rice has been the Hammers’ best player of the current league campaign by some distance, averaging a phenomenal 7.25 match rating, illustrating his importance to David Moyes’ side.

This season the 22-year-old became the youngest player to reach 150 top flight appearances for West Ham. Currently, he is on track to beat the record of club-legend Mark Noble, who has made 407 Premier League appearances for the club to date.

However, with his impressive form for club and country, having already secured 27 caps for England, Rice has received numerous interest from teams across Europe, the most prominent of which has been from the Premier League.

West Ham have valued the defensive-midfielder at £100 million and it is said that Manchester United are keen on signing the player in the summer, with further interest coming from Chelsea and Manchester City.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/west-ham-latest-news-copy/” title=”West Ham latest news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Latest: Leeds reject Irons’ club-record bid

Phil Hay of The Athletic stated previously that Leeds are ‘not open to offers’ and Phillips ‘won’t be leaving before the deadline’, and the latest news seems to have confirmed his claims.

According to a report by The Telegraph, the Hammers have had a club record £50million bid for Phillips officially rejected by Leeds.

The Verdict: Highly unlikely this month

As Phillips is arguably one of Leeds’ most important players, having been described as a ‘rock’ in the midfield by Italian legend Andrea Pirlo, it seems highly unlikely that West Ham will sign the 26-year-old before the 11pm deadline – the Whites cannot afford to lose him in the midst of a relegation fight.

However, this activity could indicate that Rice may be off in the summer for an extortionate fee, as recruitment chief Rob Newman is willing to break the club-record bid for a very similar player.

As much as Irons fans would love to keep Rice forever, it feels extremely unlikely Newman would be going in for Phillips if the Hammers hero is planning to stay long-term.

Therefore, it could be possible that the Irons reprise their interest in Phillips in the summer window, when the West Ham man’s future at the club becomes clearer.

In other news: Irons interested in Christian Benteke

Leeds United are surely in line for a summer of change as manager Jesse Marsch looks to stamp down his mark at Elland Road following four largely joyous years under Marcelo Bielsa.

The Yorkshire giants moved five points clear of the relegation zone with a hard-fought point down at Crystal Palace on Monday night, keeping safety in the Premier League firmly in their own grasp.

Despite it being so early in his tenure, the American head coach hasn’t been afraid to trust youth at times, as evident this week as he turned to Sam Greenwood once again – the 20-year-old academy gem came on after just an hour with the Whites in need of an attacking spark.

Perhaps Marsch could find another interesting solution from the U23s set up in the form of Sean McGurk, 19.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-leeds-news-transfer-rumours-gossip-marsch-raphinha-dest-philhay” title=”Read the latest Leeds news!”]

Heading into the off-season, Leeds have been linked with renewed interest in RB Salzburg dynamo Brenden Aaronson, who was seemingly a target prior to the 48-year-old’s arrival in the dugout but given he has managed the USMNT international before, those rumours will only increase further.

But he could well already have a player capable of filling such a role in the Liverpool-born teenager.

Primarily a left-winger, McGurk is more than adept at playing on the right and through the middle as a no.10, just like Aaronson under Marsch – 17 of his 25 appearances came on the left, with the other eight being spread across the middle and right, as per Transfermarkt.

Whilst the Leeds gem is yet to taste action in the first-team squad, he has been a regular for the U23s in the Premier League 2 this campaign, where he has delivered three direct goal contributions from 17 appearances.

McGurk’s ability to press from the front with relentless energy will surely catch Marsch’s eye sooner or later and that’s exactly what you’d expect from his former Salzburg star, who ranks amongst the top 1% of his positional peers for pressures (27.23 per 90).

His performances at youth level for Wigan Athletic is what caught Leeds’ interest, whilst his U18s coach Peter Murphy has waxed lyrical about his potential, too. He told the club’s official website:

“Sean was brilliant, he’s been amazing. He had a slow start to his scholarship with an injury in the summer, but since he’s been fit, he’s got himself into the team and stayed there. He’s so effective in games, he sets things up, he scores goals and he’ll always do that because of his ability.”

Meanwhile, McGurk’s efforts in west Yorkshire haven’t gone completely unnoticed either – The Athletic’s Phil Hay deemed him “a cracking wee player”, whilst the Yorkshire Evening Post’s Lee Sobot dubbed the teen “a bag of tricks.”

On the above evidence, Marsch could well already have an Aaronson-like starlet within his ranks. The former Latics sensation ought to get a look in heading into next season.

AND in other news, Forget Meslier: Leeds titan who won 81% duels was Marsch’s one shining light at Palace…

USMNT star Chris Richards shared a hilarious response to a question regarding his first goal for Crystal Palace.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

Chris Richards scores first Palace goalDefeat Burnley 3-0USMNT star shares why he chose to use headWHAT HAPPENED?

After scoring his first-ever goal for Crystal Palace, the USMNT defender shared some insight as to why he opted for a low-driven header. His opening goal, which arrived midway through the second half, helped Palace to a 3-0 victory over 10-man Burnley.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesWHAT CHRIS RICHARDS SAID

Richards was asked by the official Crystal Palace website if he "thought about volleying it instead" in the moment of his brilliant goal. Tongue in cheek, the USMNT defender replied "Nah, nah, no – I grew the Fro out so I could head it, I was ready for it."

THE BIGGER PICTURE

After a slow start to his Selhurst Park career following a 2022 move from Bayern Munich, Richards has finally broken into the first team on a regular basis this season. His versatility has proved particularly useful for the Eagles, with his 21 appearances coming in three different positions.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

GettyWHAT NEXT FOR CHRIS RICHARDS AND PALACE?

Crystal Palace report for action again next Saturday when they take on Tottenham Hotspur. New boss Oliver Glasner will look to make it two wins in two after securing three points in his first match on Saturday.