Hearts failed in late Webster bid

Andy Webster has now joined Wigan Athletic

Hearts failed in a fresh bid to tempt Scotland defender Andy Webster to extend his stay at Tynecastle before he signed for Wigan Athletic.

The Scottish Premier League club's owner, Vladimir Romanov, told BBC Sport that Webster had been offered a new contract with higher wages.

Webster was dropped midway through last season after refusing a new contract.

And he became the first player to use a loophole in a Fifa-adopted EU law to leave a club before his deal ended.

Fifa this week gave Wigan the go-ahead to sign Webster in a historic move, with a compensation figure still to be set by world football's governing body.

The surprise late attempt by Hearts majority shareholder to woo Webster back to Tynecastle came despite Romanov's public criticism of the 24-year-old's attempt to free himself from the Edinburgh club.

But the Lithuanian-based businessman said the matter was now closed.