Richards proud to 'step up' for Palace
After Crystal Palace secured a hard-fought 1-0 win over Ipswich Town, Chris Richards said that – ultimately – the result was the most important thing from Saturday’s game.
The Eagles were made to battle to secure a fourth win in a row in all competitions, as well as a ninth clean sheet of the current campaign – but win they did, thanks to Ismaïla Sarr’s well-taken finish in the closing stages of the campaign.
Richards, who made an impressive match-high seven tackles in the victory – to go along with five clearances, three aerial duels won and two blocks – said to Palace TV: “A win and a clean sheet, you can't really ask for much more.
“Our performance wasn't the best, but three points are three points. We knew Ipswich were going to fight – they're fighting for survival – and so we knew that they were going to throw the kitchen sink at us.
“We expected that and we knew it wasn't going to be pretty. But at the end of the day, we stuck to the game plan, missed a few shots, made it a little bit harder than it should have been – but we got one in the end, so that's all that matters.”
Richards’ made his 10th consecutive Premier League start for Palace in Saturday’s game – recording a fifth clean sheet in that time – following the departure of loanee Trevoh Chalobah back to Chelsea.
After appearing 26 times last season, Richards – who has now played 22 times in all competitions in 2024/25 – will be hoping to take the further opportunities which come his way.
“I've just kind of been trusting the process this season,” the United States international admitted.
“When Trevoh left, it was my turn to step up. I've tried not to look back – so just keep plugging away every game, and continue to put together good performances and helping the team win.
“My first season [in 2022/23] was a bit rough for me, trying to find my way into the squad. And then last season, I felt like I played a lot of games, especially towards the end. This season started off roughly as well, but I’ve eventually found my way back into the team.
“I've felt complete support from everyone around Palace, whether it's the fans, whether it's the staff, whether it's the players – so I’m enjoying my time a lot at Palace.”
As for the rest of March, a week-long training camp in Marbella – during which Palace will play a mid-season friendly against Norwegian side HamKam, LIVE on Palace TV+ – will be followed by the first international window of 2025, and then an FA Cup quarter-final away at Fulham.
“Let's hope it's sunny!” Richards said of the Marbella trip. “It looks like it's going to be rainy, so I'm not quite sure what's going on!
“The weather is great here this week, so hopefully we can bring that to Marbella.
“It's a little bit of fun and work, you know, but I think we're definitely gonna have a lot of fun. We're a good group of guys. We all like to be around each other.
“Just being in a sunny place, being near a beach, I think that'll bring a lot more good vibes as well.”
Richards also smiled at Sarr’s celebration – a reenactment of the injured Jean-Philippe Mateta’s goalscoring routine: “I think he hit the corner flag a bit lower than JP usually does, but I think he's just a bit tired from Ramadan!
“But regardless, you know, it was cool to have a little tribute to JP today.”