Melvyn Richardson wants to write more history with Barça

“I feel proud and happy of what I’ve done, for sure. But I want to keep going, I want to keep on writing history,” Richardson says.

Answering the question whether having achieved something like this so young takes off a little bit of pressure, Richardson does not hesitate, saying: “No, because I put a lot of pressure on my shoulders to win as many trophies as I possibly can.”

But before thinking of adding another line to his record just yet, the French right back has to focus on the second leg of the Machineseeker EHF Champions League quarter-finals (Thursday 18 May, 20:45 CEST, live on EHFTV).

In the first leg, the title-holders beat GOG by seven goals (37:30) to make a huge leap towards the TruckScout24 EHF FINAL4. Did it feel like the perfect game to the Barça players?

“Perfect, no. But we managed to find solutions against their impressive offence and we managed to outscore them. The plan was, if possible, not to try to shut them down with our defence but to score even more than they would,” explains Richardson.

Although Barça appear to be close to their fifth consecutive visit to Cologne, history has taught the players to be careful.

“We’re talking about the Champions League, there could be surprises anywhere. I’ll be honest, of course we have done a great job in Denmark, but we have to be extra careful as GOG will not have anything to lose when they visit us,” thinks Richardson.

Even more than just qualifying, the Barça players also aim to remain unbeaten on home court at the Palau Blaugrana. Regardless of the competition, no team has been able to take a single point in the iconic Barcelona venue this season.

Richardson, who arrived in Barcelona from Montpellier at the start of the 2021/22 season, knows the reasons behind this success.

“The fans push us, especially in those big Champions League clashes. There is a real support, and the club pays real attention to what face we display at home. There is a lot of history behind us, you can see that in the tunnel leading to the court, for example. And that puts you in the state of mind where you know you just cannot lose on home court,” he explains.

Barça are accordingly expecting their fans and the weight of history to lift them up once more for the final Champions League game of the season at home – and hopefully up to Cologne again. Barça still have a chance to win their third consecutive title, something that has not been done since the end of the 1990s, when Barça won the competition five times in a row between 1996 and 2000.

“I was barely born back then so I can’t talk to you about that,” laughs Richardson.

“Really, we are not trying to think too much ahead right now. It’s all about Thursday, taking another win at home, qualifying and then we’ll see what happens. Yes, we all want to write history with Barça, but there is a job to finish before anything else.”

Photos © Victor Salgado