Following days of intense negotiations, Kenyan versatile left-back Vincent Harper is, at long last, set to join English Football League (EFL) Championship side Oxford United from League One outfit Exeter City, The Nerve Africa has exclusively learned.
Harper, who still has a season left on his Exeter contract, has been a subject of interest from Oxford for a while. After extended negotiations, the saga has finally come to a positive conclusion, with both sides reaching an agreement over a potential deal.
Speaking to The Nerve Africa in an exclusive interview, a source from the player’s camp disclosed that the player will join the EFL Championship side on a four-year contract.
“It’s no secret that they (Oxford) have tracked Harp (Harper) for a while. It’s an honour that a compromise has been reached with Exeter. He will cross over after his medical, for four years. That’s the bit of the contract I can tell you about at the moment.”
Having joined last year, Harper established himself as a stronghold in the Exeter team during the 2023/24 campaign. He played 37 times across all competitions, with four appearances in the EFL Cup, and one each in the FA Cup and the EFL Trophy.
Meanwhile, the 23-year-old started out his career at the Bristol City Academy, after which he joined Gloucester, Weston Super-Mare AFC, and Bath City on loan. His rise later saw him at sixth-tier side Chippenham in 2021 for a short stint before joining Eastleigh FC in the fifth tier. That was before making the leap to Exeter.
At the international stage, Harper has yet to make his debut for the Kenyan National Senior team (Harambee Stars), but he was part of the squad that drew 2-2 with Russia in a friendly match that took place in Turkey last October.
