Lionel Messi would rather see his club sign Mesut Özil than Philippe Coutinho, according to reports.

The Daily Star report that Messi has called on Barcelona chiefs to look at bringing in the German on a free next summer, rather than spending a lot of money on Coutinho.

Liverpool have already rejected multiple bids for the Brazilian, so it’s difficult to say whether another bid next summer would convince the Merseyside club to part with him.

It’s a bit of a confidence boost for the Arsenal man to hear that such a great player reportedly wants to play alongside him, but hopefully that’s all it is.

Arsenal should ideally want to hold onto the German, for me, especially when he’s showing he’s capable of putting in the kinds of performances we saw last weekend.

Özil created eight chances last weekend against Everton, more than any player in a Premier League game this season. Not to mention getting on the scoresheet to give Arsenal the lead.

When the World Cup winner is playing like that, I wouldn’t be surprised if Barcelona wanted him. But with his contract up in the summer, Arsenal could struggle to keep him.