City's phenomenal rise into Europe's elite has attracted plenty of negative coverage, with their fiercest critics particularly annoyed by the huge amounts of money that have been spent on the team.
But if City can beat Stoke in Saturday's FA Cup final at Wembley, not only will they have gatecrashed the top four, they will have ended a 35-year wait for a major trophy.
For Richards, who joined the Blues as a youth-team player, it is the stuff of dreams and the perfect response to those who seek to talk them down.
"It has shut a few people up," he said. "We always wanted to answer the critics.
"We have invested in some quality players who have shown what they can do. Hopefully we can do a bit more shopping in the summer to make us an even better team."
Source: PA
Source: PA