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Celtic reportedly have 'major reservations' over Bournemouth technical director Richard Hughes.
That's according to a report from Football Insider, who have been informed by a Hoops source that the club are 'committed' to appointing Manchester City's Fergal Harkin as their new director of football instead and that it is more than 90% done, a big update in the race to appoint a DoF at Parkhead.
The club are thought to be closing in on landing Harkin, with Eddie Howe's alleged first choice of Hughes seemingly now falling by the wayside after concerns about the way Bournemouth plummeted out of the Premier League.
Eddie Howe to Celtic blow?
Howe verbally agreed on taking over at Parkhead, however, the former Bournemouth boss wanted some assurances over a Glasgow switch.
One of those was reportedly bringing Hughes with him to Celtic Park, and it doesn't appear as if that will materialise with the club not intending to deviate from Harkin.
Transfer Tavern take
To us, this news won't help Celtic's pursuit of Howe in the slightest.
The new first-team manager will have to work closely with the DoF when it comes to off-field dealings, and it seemed as if Howe wanted to reunite with Hughes following their time on the south coast.
Howe appears to be a man in demand, with Brighton and Crystal Palace also keen on the 43-year-old, so it's not as if he is desperate to seal a move to Scotland.
Harkin, who looks set to be appointed, will reportedly have a major say on Neil Lennon's successor, so it'll be interesting to see where Celtic's managerial hunt goes from here, but we suspect that hunt may veer slightly away from Howe given the club's decision to reject his desire to snap up Hughes.
In other news: £5.8k-p/w Celtic ace closing in on Parkhead exit, find out more here.
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