The Daily Record had claimed that the SPL leaders wanted to swap Swedish international shot-stopper Magnus Hedman for Harper, in a deal that would have benefited nobody but the players’ agents and Celtic number one Rab Douglas.
Bhoys boss Martin O’Neill is currently having problems keeping both Hedman and Douglas happy and is keen to hang on to the Scotland international, so bringing in Harper as his deputy would be an ideal solution.
For us though there would seem to be little to gain from swapping one good keeper for another, particularly if the incoming one is less happy to play understudy to Shay Given and has a poor recent record with injuries.
When quizzed about the rumours, Sir Bobby replied: "Nobody has been in touch with me asking about Steve. My telephone is cold."
It would certainly be no surprise if other clubs were eyeing Harper, as he is more than capable of playing regularly in the top-flight and would surely have done so had it not been for the continuing excellence of Given.