The 26-year-old looked poised to return to his hometown club - five years after leaving for Sheffield Wednesday - after being released from his Aberdeen deal.

May passed a medical on Tuesday and was pencilled in to face Brechin City the next day, only for the move to falter.

"I can't to go into the ins and outs because I don't know," said Wright.

"But I can clarify the deal is dead, which is disappointing from my point of view as the manager, I am sure the fans are disappointed, the club are disappointed and I'm sure Stevie is extremely disappointed.

"I was expecting everything to be tidied up on Wednesday but I got phone call at about 15:00 to inform me the deal is dead and to start looking somewhere else - that is all I know.

"I haven't been given the reasons, it is irrelevant really the reasons for me because I haven't got the player I wanted and I have go to now go and find another striker."

May, who played as St Johnstone won the Scottish Cup in 2014, scored eight times in his two seasons at Aberdeen, having returned north from Preston, where he suffered a serious knee injury in 2015.

The striker, who was an unused substitute in both legs of Aberdeen's Europa League qualifying win over RoPS of Finland, had spoken to Dundee, with Kilmarnock and St Mirren also reportedly interested.

"It is disappointing all round, but it has happened before for this club and other clubs, so it is something we have just got to draw a line under and move on," Wright added.