The 24-year-old left-back has signed a four-year contract at the City Ground and becomes Forest Head Coach Steve Cooper's fifth signing of the transfer window.
The defender made 104 appearances for Reading after coming through the club’s academy and establishing himself as a first team regular with the Berkshire club, before moving to Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich.
Since moving to the German champions, Richards has made 17 appearances in all competitions, whilst starting six matches.
Despite Richards' struggles to break into the first-team ahead of Lucas Hernandez and Alphonso Davies, it is obvious that the 24-year-old has a lot of talent and experience in England.
How will he fit in at Forest?
Richards will likely start as a wing-back on the left hand side of a three-man defence, which is the system Head Coach Steve Cooper operated mostly last season.
Richards hasn't had much luck at Munich, but he's spent the past year working with players of the calibre of Robert Lewandowski, Alphonso Davies, Serge Gnabry, Leroy Sane, and others.
Of the 17 appearances in Germany, Richards’ best game was arguably against 1899 Hoffenheim. Richards finished the Bundesliga match with one clearance, three tackles, and 11 ground duels won.
Richards was difficult to stop, and as a result, he was fouled five times while making three successful dribbles. The defender finished the game with three accurate long balls and a 79% pass completion rate.
These numbers mirror those he produced while playing for Reading in the Championship, proving that the defender's lack of playing time hasn't slowed him down.
The former Bayern Munich defender is renowned for his pace, one-on-one defending, and his astute judgement. A versatile wingback who enjoys playing aggressively will be acquired by Forest.
Richards will be a natural wingback to replace Jack Colback, who is typically a midfielder. The Reds thought to have a comparable left wingback in Max Lowe last season before injuries affected his loan spell.
Richards “thrilled” by move
Upon his arrival, the defender told Forest’s media team, “I’m thrilled to return to England by joining Nottingham Forest at such an exciting time.
“The club has enjoyed an incredible last few months and there’s great ambitions for the Premier League return.
“I’ve played against Forest in the past and they get such great backing from their fans, whilst the City Ground is an amazing place that I can now call home. I can’t wait to join up with the squad this week and begin preparations for the new season.”
Omar Richards is a name that is welcomed to that list of shrewd acquisitions Forest have made since being promoted to the Premier League, joining the likes of Taiwo Awoniyi, Dean Henderson, Giuliane Biancone, and Moussa Niakhaté.