Nottingham Forest defender Omar Richards has arrived in Greece to complete a season-long loan deal with Olympiacos. The left-back is yet to play for the Reds after signing from Bayern Munich for £8.5 million 12 months ago.
According to Sport 24, the Reds player has now touched down in the Greek capital. He will get the chance to play for Evangelos Marinakis’ other club as he bids to prove his fitness after a broken leg and a hernia operation.
Richards looked an eye-catching signing when he was originally added to the Forest ranks. He’d made 17 appearances for the Bundesliga champions and he was expected to compete with Harry Toffolo for the left-back spot.
He quickly became injured though, picking up a hairline fracture of his shin bone. That ruled him out for around six months and after that point, it was decided that he’d need to have surgery on a troublesome hernia problem.
Forest defender Richards did return to pre-season training this summer. Steve Cooper has explained, however, that the player has got to get his body right in order to be able to compete in the Premier League on a regular basis.
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Letting Richards go on loan makes sense from a Forest perspective, although it’s not without risk. The Reds have added Ola Aina who played left-back against Arsenal but Toffolo is facing a ban after breaching some betting regulations earlier in his career.
Forest defender Richards arrives in Greece to sign for Olympiacos
Forest player Richards is about to join Gustavo Scarpa in Greece. There was some dismay about that loan deal but there is unlikely to be the same angst about this one.
Richards needs to play regular football and this could be a golden opportunity. The 25-year-old will be desperate to get going and hopefully, he can play lots of football in Greece.
It’s hard not to feel any sympathy for Richards. He’s arrived at Forest desperate for a crack at the Premier League and what he’s experienced has been nothing short of a nightmare.
Richards will hope that Olympiacos can give him the platform to kick on at Forest and make a claim for a place next season when he returns.