Harambee Stars defender to play under former Manchester United goalkeeper at English club

Harambee Stars full-back Vincent Harper will play under former Manchester United goalkeeper Lee Grant, following his appointment as Walsall’s new men’s head coach on a three-year contract.

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Grant, 43, was unveiled at the Pallet-Track Bescot Stadium on Thursday, 14 May, taking over from interim head coach Darren Byfield, who had been in charge of the team, shortly after the sacking of Mat Sadler in March.

"I'm super delighted and proud to be the new Head Coach of Walsall Football Club," Grant, whose accomplished career as a shot-stopper saw him make than 500 professional appearances across English clubs before retiring in 2022 during his time at Manchester United, said.

“It's been an extensive process, and one that's been ongoing for the last couple of weeks. The focus on the conversations that I've had with the hierarchy at the club is on the alignment of where we want this club to be, and the vision is shared across the board.”

Grant’s only managerial role came at Huddersfield Town in May 2025, where he oversaw 36 competitive matches, achieving a 41% win record in the process.

Alongside his playing achievements, Grant, who holds a UEFA Pro License has worked under several highly respected coaches throughout his career to date, including: Sean Dyche, Eddie Howe and José Mourinho.

The former Derby keeper also enjoyed a highly successful spell as Assistant Manager under Kieran McKenna at Ipswich Town, having previously worked together in Manchester.

During his time at Portman Road, Grant played a key role within the coaching setup, focusing particularly on the team’s attacking phase of play.

Ipswich would score 101 goals on route to getting promoted to League One in the 2022/23 season, before securing a second successive promotion to the Premier League in 2023/24, scoring a further 92 goals in the Championship campaign.

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In Walsall, Grant inherits a team that finished 13th in League Two, 13 points outside the play-offs, having been top of the table at Christmas.

Harper, who still has one full season to go at the club, will hope to be a consistent feature for Grant, having only played in 30 of the team’s 46 games in the league, most of them as a late substitute.