Player #868 for Aston Villa, Kieran Edward Richardson played as a left back played as a left back for the club in Villa’s 2014-15 and 2015-16 Premier League campaigns, with the latter ending in Villa’s first relegation from the top tier in nearly 30 years. Kieran made 41 appearances.

Kieran was born in Greenwich on 12 October 1984.

Paul Lambert had signed Kieran from Fulham for £675,000 on 11 July 2014 in a total about turn on transfer policy. Gone were the lower league imports and in came an equally unfathomable approach - signing ageing, faltering and in some cases downright failed players with ‘Big 6’ club history but who had long ago discarded them.

In summary, Richardson, ex-Manchester United, arrived and although it represented a shock to the system that this was the level of recruitment Villa was now operating at, he provided solid if unspectacular predictability despite his better days being well behind him.

Richardson started all of Villa’s first 9 games as to the surprise of many Lambert’s team made the best start to a campaign since John Gregory’s in 1998-99 during which time Richardson contributed his only assist of the season for Andreas Weimann to score in the 36’ of Villa’s 2-1 win over Hull City on Sunday, 31 August 2014. Normal service however resumed with four consecutive losses at an aggregate score of 0-11 before Richardson was relegated to the bench.

Richardson would make just three starts and six substitute appearances in the next 20 games before returning to the team in Tim Sherwood’s first game in charge on Saturday, 21 February 2015. Richardson however was substituted off in the 42’ with injury and he missed a further six games as a result.

Following his recover from injury Sherwood recalled Richardson to the team for six successive starts before injury once again ruled the former England man out only to return to start for Villa in the 2015 FA Cup final defeat at Wembley.

In total Richardson played 26 games for Villa in 2014-15.

2015-16 saw interim manager Sherwood surprisingly kept in post and with a major, though disjointed overhaul of the squad having taken place in the close season, it was not clear how often Richardson and as a result he would not make a Premier League start until his penultimate game in charge on Saturday, 17 October 2015 in Villa’s 0-2 defeat at Chelsea. A run for Richardson of 6 games in the side as a starter saw Villa lose all six at an aggregate score of 5-16 as Villa chalked up their 12th loss in 17 games.

By the end of Richardson’s run of starts Tim Sherwood was gone and Rémi Garde had arrived as his successor but after an initial new starts under Villa’s new boss, Richardson was relegated to the bench and he made just 3 starts and 2 substitute appearances in Garde’s next 20 games.

With Garde’s resignation with Villa on the brink of an inevitable relegation, caretaker manager Eric Black recalled Richardson to the starting line up for his final 2 games for the club including the defeat away to Manchester United on Saturday, 16 April 2016 that confirmed Villa’s relegation before once again succumbing to injury.

Richardson was released by Villa in July 2016.

Cissokho played under Paul Lambert, Scott Marshall & Andy Marshall, Tim Sherwood, Rémi Garde and Eric Black.