Former Chelsea assistant Ray Wilkins reckons that Jose Mourinho would much rather sign Willian than Mesut Ozil.

Wilkins has shot down claims that Ozil could be signing for Manchester United once his contract with Arsenal expires at the end of the season.

The pundit reckons that Mourinho would prefer to sign Chelsea’s Willian over the 29-year-old.

“I would have sold Ozil in the summer, the same with [Alexis] Sanchez – it’s embarrassing,” Wilkins told Sportingbet.

“I find it quite sad that the club have allowed Wenger to take the stance of not selling them, potentially costing the club £120million in fees that they’re now not getting.

“Mesut Ozil won’t go to Old Trafford because he doesn’t have the work ethic that Mourinho looks for in his players. I actually see Willian as being the likely player to head to Old Trafford.

“Jose is an enormous admirer of Willian and he would be a special signing for United, but I pray that Chelsea don’t let him go.”

Willian has been linked with a move to Old Trafford in recent weeks and considering Mourinho was the manager who brought the midfielder to Chelsea from Anzhi in 2013, it stands to reason that the Portuguese coach rates him.

Wilkins’ comments contradict reports that Mourinho is planning on selling Henrikh Mkhitaryan in order to bring Ozil to Manchester.

Mkhitaryan is said to be ‘out-of-favour’ after making 10 Premier League starts this season. The 28-year-old hasn’t been in the squad since United’s 1-0 win over Brighton on 25 November and although he’s provided five assists this season, they were all during the opening three games.

During his pre-Newcastle presser, Arsene Wenger confirmed that United haven’t made any contact with Arsenal over Ozil.

Wenger says there has not been an approach from Manchester United for Mesut Ozil.

— James Olley (@JamesOlley) December 15, 2017

It’s also being reported that the playmaker is set to sign a new deal with Arsenal in the coming weeks, which would be a rather lovely Christmas present.