Chris Richards has a chance at history when Crystal Palace face Manchester City in Saturday's FA Cup final
Crystal Palace are unlikely finalists for the FA Cup, and on Saturday they'll have a chance to topple Manchester City for their first trophy since winning the English second tier in 1993-94. Coming into the season, they were seen as a dark-horse team that might have an outside shot at European soccer, but, after a slow start under Oliver Glasner, that hope faded until an improbable cup run now has them on Europe's doorstep despite sitting 12th in the table.
Palace can secure a Europa League berth with a win, and if they're to do so, one player who will be important to doing that is Chris Richards. Like Palace, the American had a slow start to the season, needing to fight for his spot in the XI after recruitment brought two new centerbacks to Selhurst Park during the summer. Trevoh Chalobah being recalled from his loan to return to Chelsea reopened the spot for Richards to start weekly in Glasnar's back three, and he hasn't looked back since.
Finding his scoring touch on set pieces with a goal and an assist in all competitions this season and using his pace to interchange with Marc Guehi and Maxence Lacroix, Richards has improved drastically as a player this season. He's always been talented, but now beginning to move into his prime, Richards also has the match experience to position himself to not get caught out using his speed and ability in the air to keep opposing forwards at bay.
Facing Erling Haaland and Omar Marmoush, Richards and the defense will have their work cut out for them, but getting past Aston Villa, Fulham, and Millwall, they've shown that their prepared for tests along the way. This is a talented Palace side, and with players such as Eberechi Eze gaining experience at the top levels for their international sides, this won't be a time where they're awed by the occasion at Wembley. They may be underdogs facing City, but Pep Guardiola's side has been susceptible to unlikely defeats this season, and in a one-off final, anything can happen.
Richards will also have an opportunity to be the latest American to win a major trophy while playing for a Premier League team if Palace lifts the FA Cup. While Americans have been dotted around the Premier League over the years, the list of those to win a trophy while doing so is quite a short one.
The last American to do that was technically Zack Steffen, making appearances while Manchester City won the Premier League in 2021-22, but there's quite a track record of success for Americans in the Premier League over the years. From keepers leading their sides to glory to a few outfielders sprinkled in, here's how Americans have stacked up in the Premier League. Notably absent, John Harkes did win the League Cup with Sheffield Wednesday, but they were in the second division when they accomplished the feat.
Americans to win trophies with Premier League teams| Name | Club | Honors | Number of trophies |
|---|---|---|---|
Zack Steffen | Manchester City | Premier League (2020-21, 2021-22) | 2 |
Brad Friedel | Blackburn Rovers | EFL Cup (2001-02) | 1 |
Tim Howard | Manchester United | FA Cup (2003-04), EFL Cup (2005-06) | 2 |
Christian Pulisic | Chelsea | Champions League (2021-22), UEFA Super Cup (2021), Club World Cup (2021) | 3 |
- Date: Saturday, May 17 | Time: 11:30 a.m. ET
- Location: Wembley Stadium -- London
- Live stream: ESPN+
- Odds: Crystal Palace +320; Draw +270; Manchester City -130
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