In Germany, defender Chris Richards became the first U.S. player to start a Bundesliga match for Bayern Munich, putting an exclamation point on the historic moment by posting his first assist in the club’s 4-3 win against Hertha Berlin on Sunday.
Inserted at right back, Richards was active up the wing throughout the match, and initially looked to have collected his first assist in the 36th minute. The FC Dallas Academy product crossed in for Thomas Müller, but the 2014 FIFA World Cup winner was ruled offside on his take.
Just four minutes later, Richards helped Bayern get on the board, connecting with Robert Lewandowski who saw his initial header saved. The ball was played back across and deflected before Lewandowski finished in the 40th minute.
After seeing his assist called back moments before, @eastmamba gets a bit of redemption, sending in the initial cross which led to Robert Lewandowski's opening goal for @FCBayernUS!pic.twitter.com/S7t9rCphPQ
— U.S. Soccer MNT (@USMNT) October 4, 2020>
His first assist finally came after the break. Serg Gnabry slid Richards towards the end line on the right, allowing him to one-time a low cross to the top of the area. Lewandowski received the ball and touched around a defender before tucking it inside the lower left corner.
There's his assist! @eastmamba provides Robert Lewandowski with his second of the match for @FCBayernUS.
— U.S. Soccer MNT (@USMNT) October 4, 2020
Dream first start for the 🇺🇸 defender!
(@ESPNFC)pic.twitter.com/oM0zmgoovF
Withdrawn in the 65th minute, Richards finished the match with a 90 percent pass completion rate, while the three chances he created were the second most of any player on the field after Müller (six).
Richards departed the match with Bayern leading 2-1. From the bench, he saw Hertha twice equalize only for Bayern to score two more goals from Lewandowski as the reigning champs ran out 4-3 winners.
The 20-year-old featured for the U.S. at last year’s FIFA U-20 World Cup and is now seeking to earn his USMNT debut.