• Hull furious at player’s ‘absolutely ridiculous’ wage demands
• Club’s Adam Pearson scathing about Bullard’s attitude

Jimmy Bullard’s proposed season-long loan deal with Celtic has collapsed after the Hull City midfielder failed to agree personal terms with the Glasgow club. The injury prone midfielder, Hull’s highest earner on around £50,000 a week, travelled to Scotland for talks with Celtic last week but, to the disappointment of Hull’s head of football operations, Adam Pearson, Bullard is now expected back in East Yorkshire this week.

“The deal is off… because of the absolutely ridiculous financial demands being made by the player,” said Pearson. “We have bent over backwards to try to make this happen and four weeks ago there was an agreement with Celtic in place over a year-long loan.

“But now it seems Jimmy wants extra cash on top and he has jeopardised the chance to play for a great club. Who would not want to play for Celtic with a chance of European football and silverware?

“Hull City were prepared to subsidise a year in Glasgow for Bullard. Let’s just say we would have made a significant contribution to the overall wage package. But unless he has a dramatic change of heart overnight, we expect him back here. He has had four weeks to make up his mind and has strung people along, frankly.”

Hull CityCelticTransfer windowLouise Taylorguardian.co.uk

• Former Portsmouth manager Paul Hart on Hull shortlist
• No appointment until Phil Brown’s severance deal is done

Paul Hart has emerged as a leading contender to become Hull City’s new manager. The experienced 57-year-old, who has had stints in charge of Portsmouth and Crystal Palace, has held talks with Adam Pearson, Hull’s former chairman who is now head of football operations.

However no appointment will be made until a severance deal is agreed with the outgoing Phil Brown.

Gary Speed, currently assisting Kevin Blackwell at Sheffield United, is another name on Hull’s shortlist but is understood to be unsure about accepting the challenge.

Iain Dowie, who stepped in when Brown was placed on gardening leave in March but failed to prevent the club being relegated from the Premier League, wants the job but is now considered an outside candidate.

Hull CityPaul HartIain DowieLouise Taylorguardian.co.uk

Sir Alex Ferguson admits he is “clutching at straws” in the hope Manchester United can overtake Chelsea on the final bend of the season. He may have to lower those expectations should Vladimir Stojkovic stand between the Wigan posts and the destiny of the Premier League trophy at Stamford Bridge next Sunday.

The Serbian international goalkeeper produced, in the kindest terms, an erratic display in the absence of the injured Chris Kirkland as Hull City’s relegation was mathematically sealed in stoppage time at the DW Stadium. Despite needing a six point and 24 goal swing over West Ham United to avoid the drop before kick off, Iain Dowie’s team – plus a sizable travelling support – refused to go quietly and should have taken survival to the final day with a first away win since March 2009.

Headed goals by Will Atkinson and Mark Cullen, the first after an erroneous offside decision was overturned by referee Phil Dowd and the second from an offside position that wasn’t identified, placed Hull on the cusp of their first away win for 425 days until Steve Gohouri’s overhead kick salvaged a draw for Wigan and sparked a mass pitch invasion. The Latics’ late joy will not be shared by anyone of an Old Trafford persuasion, however, as Wigan and Stojkovic in particular offered little to suggest they can spoil the coronation of Carlo Ancelotti’s team in west London next weekend.

Robert Martinez’s men – who have beaten Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal at the DW this season and deserve more respect than they have received since the league leader’s win at Anfield yesterday – had suggested the opposite in a dominant start that brought a first Wigan goal for Victor Moses. The talented winger cut inside two Hull defenders and sent a measured finish in off Matt Duke’s far post after being sent clear down the left following a mistake by George Boateng. But it was Stojkovic’s errors that altered the course of the contest.

The Wigan keeper, who once had a trial with Everton abruptly halted after just one training session, had already spread unease through his defence when he needlessly punched a harmless Boateng cross into the path of Kevin Kilbane. Two Hull strikers were offside when Kilbane crossed into the area but Atkinson arrived from an onside position to head beyond the static Serb. Dowd correctly overruled his assistant who had disallowed the goal for offside.

Hull’s second was offside, but this time there was no flag as Cullen ghosted in behind Mario Melchiot to glance another Boateng cross past Stojkovic. The ironic cheers whenever the Wigan keeper caught a cross – from his own supporters – must have sounded like a death-knell to Ferguson.

Premier LeagueWigan AthleticHull CityAndy Hunterguardian.co.uk