Lewis Richards, a star for Bradford City, may be leaving the team in the next few days as no new contract has been announced.
Despite being given a new contract in May, the left-back, who helped the Bantams win promotion to League Two the previous season, has not yet signed it. Rumours that he might actually be moving have been fanned by reports of interest from League One team Stockport Country.
Richards struggled to make an impact after Christmas despite playing 22 league games the previous season, in part because of Tayo Adaramola’s performance while on loan from Crystal Palace.
Nevertheless, he was crucial to Bradford’s promotion, particularly in January when he scored in back-to-back games against Grimsby and Barrow.
Richards is probably with a League One team.
Richards has a tough decision to make if rumours that Dave Challinor’s team is keeping an eye on the 23-year-old in an attempt to recruit him are accurate.
Next season, City and Stockport will be direct league opponents, therefore Alexander will want to avoid bolstering a rival.
When the Hatters returned to League One last season, they made a strong push for promotion, just losing out on the automatics in third place. In the playoffs, the team would lose to Leyton Orient on penalties.
If Bradford doesn’t offer Richards new terms, he will have to make the decision and probably desire to play in the third division.
Following Bradford’s announcement of the signing of former Wimbledon wing-back Josh Neufville, speculation has increased in recent days. Neufville, who signed a three-year contract, played in all 49 of Wimbledon’s League Two matches the previous season, which resulted to a promotion through the play-offs at Walsall’s expense. He will provide veteran Brad Halliday, who has consistently performed well at right-back for the team, more competition as a defensively sound, both-sided, quick full-back.
The arrival of Neufville does dampen hopes that Crystal Palace star Adaramola will return, and manager Graham Alexander will view the two as complementary. Whether he is a replacement for Richards, the latter, or both is unknown at this time.
Ruthless City has not yet made a choice.
With Neufville’s arrival, City has gotten off to a quick start in their summer transfer business. Curtis Tilt, Joe Wright, and Max Power have all joined City, and a fifth will be revealed before to the team’s preseason start date of June 23.
Although the club hasn’t released an official statement about the delay in talks with Richards, it’s likely that outside interest is holding up any potential agreement. He would join a long list of players who left the team after being promoted the previous season if he were to leave. After such a successful season, Bradford has already let go of club captain Richie Smallwood, defender Romoney Crichlow, and winger Jamie Walker.
Alexander has now acknowledged that he had a hard time deciding to free Smallwood in interviews with the Telegraph and Argus.
Alexander is ultimately in charge, and he must not be scared to make these kinds of choices if City is to succeed in League One. Richards might turn out to be the same.
Bradford hasn’t prepared for his replacement, and it’s not ideal to see him join a division rival as well as a possible play-off contender. In this brutal new period the club finds itself in, Alexander must face this obstacle head-on.
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Graham Alexander may encounter an unwelcome obstacle
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