Crystal Palace planning new contract for defender Oliver Glasner 'loves'

Crystal Palace are said to be planning to award a new contract to one of their important players. The Eagles have been on an excellent trajectory under Oliver Glasner, winning the FA Cup last season and securing European football in the process.

Palace have enjoyed a solid start to this season, too, remaining unbeaten up to now, showing they are not dropping off, at least not significantly, despite losing star man Eberechi Eze.

For Palace, the priority going forward is likely to be for them to keep hold of their best players if they are to achieve consistent success, with Marc Guehi already likely to leave in January or next summer. The likes of Adam Wharton and Jean-Philippe Mateta need to be kept hold of, and another player who falls into that category is defender Chris Richards.

The American has been a consistent performer for Glasner, and according to Football Insider, Richards will be one of the next contract renewals. Former Premier League scout Mick Brown told the website: “Palace are determined to keep their best players at the club. It’s something they have to be proactive with, getting these players tied down to long-term deals so they don’t end up a similar situation to the one they’re in with Guehi.

“When I look at the players at Crystal Palace, they’re very ambitious and all working for a single cause. Richards is somebody who has stood out aside from the usual star names likes Guehi and Mateta who are often spoken about at Palace

“He’s exactly the type of player who makes this Palace squad what they are, he’s strong on the ground, strong in the air, quick, and most importantly he’s consistent, that’s why Glasner loves him. As part of this squad, that’s how you build a side that picks up results consistently, believes in themselves, and has the ambition to keep pushing forward.”

Richards appears happy

Richards has spoken in glowing terms about Palace and Glasner on multiple occasions, and he would likely be happy to extend his contract beyond 2027 if an agreement can be reached financially.

Speaking back in May, Richards said: “I think this is the best this club has ever looked, and again next season it can only go up from here.”

He added on Glasner: “Just ambition. I think everybody says they have ambition but he shows it day in and day out. He came in having won a trophy at Frankfurt and his No. 1 thing was to kind of make history at Palace. And from day one, he’s always kind of pushed it, and we kind of did it today.”

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