Reading FC were left to rue 2021 contract decision: View | OneFootball

There was a debate about Omar Richards and the Royals' decision not to offer him a contract back in 2020.

Reading had a very talented squad at their disposal for the 2020/21 campaign.

Rafael Cabral had enjoyed a good first season at the Select Car Leasing Stadium and looked set to be a very good goalkeeping option again.

The likes of Liam Moore and Michael Morrison, meanwhile, looked to be a good pairing in central defence and another effective duo looked set to be formed in the middle of the park, with ex-Shrewsbury Town man Josh Laurent coming in to partner Andy Rinomhota in midfield.

But the Royals' most high-profile summer signing of the 2020 summer window was Ovie Ejaria, with the player coming in from Liverpool permanently after impressing during his two loan spells in Berkshire.

The trio of Ejaria, John Swift and Michael Olise looked formidable on paper, with the latter managing to take his game to a new level under Veljko Paunovic during the 2020/21 season, his last campaign in Berkshire.

And up top, Lucas Joao enjoyed a brilliant campaign, scoring 19 league goals.

Unfortunately, the Royals were unable to secure a top-six spot in the end, but they finished in seventh and enjoyed a much better season than they did in 2018/19 and 2019/20.

Omar Richards' role in 2020/21 Reading FC success

Following years of high spending, the Royals couldn't afford to fork out too much on signings during the summer of 2020, and this may have played a part in the Berkshire side's failure to strengthen their left-back department.

Having released Tyler Blackett and Jordan Obita, with fellow full-back option Chris Gunter also leaving, Omar Richards was forced to step up to the plate and be the Berkshire side's first-choice left-back.

Summer loan addition Lewis Gibson was able to fill in as a left-back when needed, but he came in as a centre-back and was a natural option there.

Thankfully, Richards managed to remain fit for a decent chunk of the season and was a consistently bright figure, stepping up well and proving to be very solid defensively.

Unfortunately for the Royals, his performances allowed him to attract interest from Bundesliga outfit Bayern Munich and with his contract expiring during the summer of 2021, they were able to get a deal over the line for him.

This meant the Berkshire side weren't compensated for his loss - and the Royals have struggled at left-back ever since then.

Baba Rahman and Nesta Guinness-Walker failed to do enough defensively during their time at the SCL Stadium and Jeriel Dorsett was forced to fill in at left-back for much of last term, with Clinton Mola frequently playing out on the right.

As mentioned above, the Royals have struggled to replace Richards since his departure.

The club did try and get the player to sign a new deal shortly before his departure, but it proved to be too little, too late, with the player opting to make the move to Bayern instead.

Few fans begrudged the left-back making the move to the Allianz Arena, but there was a debate about whether he should have been offered a deal back in the summer of 2020.

With Blackett, Obita and Gunter leaving, it made sense to offer Richards a new deal at that time, knowing that they didn't have another senior left-back option if he left in 2021.

He may not have been exceptional before the 2020/21 season, with the player taking his game to a new level during his final campaign in Berkshire, but Richards clearly had high potential.

Even if he didn't manage to fully fulfil his potential, losing him for free or a small compensation fee was a thought that should have persuaded the club to try and get the player tied down to fresh terms as quickly as possible when they knew fellow left-backs Blackett and Obita were departing.