Trio's planned exit will help Hull City move close to their target of £15m wages bill

The Tigers, who this week named Nigel Pearson as their new manager, are desperate to off-load a trio whose combined weekly wage last season was around 100,000.

Geovanni's transfer is believed to be the most imminent with several Greek clubs tracking the Brazilian, while head of football operations Pearson has confirmed a season-long loan deal for Bullard has been struck with Celtic subject to the club record signing agreeing to the switch.

Striker Cousin has also been attracting firm interest from abroad to give Hull a major potential cash saving after a difficult summer that has seen the squad agree to a pay deferral in an attempt to help the club.

Pearson, who answered an SOS from owner Russell Bartlett last October to try to plot a path through Hull 's financial problems, said: "We have got good offers on the table for the removal of Geovanni's wages. So, hopefully, that will go through.

"I would imagine Geovanni would prefer not to play in the Championship. He is a top-level footballer and I would expect a deal to go through within the next seven days.

"Jimmy has also got to decide whether or not he wants to go to Celtic.

"Celtic and ourselves are pretty happy with it (a season-long loan deal) and Jimmy has gone off to have a little think about things."

Asked if the departure of the three high-earners would leave Hull close to achieving the pre-summer target of reducing a wage bill that stood at 38.9m last season to around 15m, Pearson said: "We will be nearly there.

"We have had success so far in moving Bernard Mendy out along with Dean Marney, Stephen Hunt and Steven Mouyokolo.

"Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink has also left us, as have George Boateng and Jozy Altidore. The wage bill has had a huge chunk taken out of it.

"It is not rocket science to say we still have to move out real high earners. But we have got movement in the squad now and also had a successful three months in consolidating the club."

Hull's cost-cutting attempts have been helped by the players accepting the request for a pay deferral.

Pearson added: "All we are prepared to say on that is the players have helped us over the summer months.

"I take my hat off to them for that. They have looked at the best interests of the club and their future careers in terms of getting back into the Premier League and helped the club.

"People like Kevin Kilbane, who has agreed to split his (remaining) one-year deal into two years and halve his money.

"Things like that largely go unnoticed but it is people like Kevin Kilbane that mean this club will still be in pretty good shape next season.

"There are players at the heart of this club that care about it."

Nigel Pearson will meet his new players for the first time today as the squad return for pre-season training.

Namesake Adam said: "We have got a good squad of players and it just needs tweaking. We need to get the best out of this group and get them as fit as possible.

"We are not looking to pay transfer fees for players, those days are behind us at the minute.

"But we are very, very positive about the season ahead now and there is an air of expectancy back around the club."

I didn't expect Leicester City to grant permission to Hull City to speak to me. But, it has happened and I am delighted to be here.

– Full interview with new Hull City manager Nigel Pearson: Page 23.