Manchester United are reportedly willing to make Alexis Sanchez their highest paid player to sign him this month.

According to BBC Sport, United are now favourites to sign the Chilean, as they’re willing to meet Arsenal’s £35m asking price. The report doesn’t indicate how much the 29-year-old will earn, but various sources suggest between £300k-per-week and £350k-per-week.

Either amount would make the player Manchester United’s highest earner. Figures from Totalsportek give these wages for the top-five in the current squad:

• Paul Pogba – £290,000
• Romelu Lukaku – £200,000
• David De Gea – £200,000
• Henrikh Mkhitaryan – £140,000
• Juan Mata – £140,000

Totalsportek don’t include Zlatan Ibrahimovic on the list, since he hadn’t signed a new deal at the start of the season. Reports suggest he’s earning a reduced wage of £180,000-per-week, thanks to his fitness problems.

It seems, therefore, that Manchester United are willing to make their biggest financial commitment to sign Alexis. This is despite Mourinho’s claims last month that the Red Devils can’t compete financially with Man City. Clearly those comments were complete nonsense, as the club significantly outbid their local rivals.

Unfortunately, it seems like Arsenal are going to lose another key player to Manchester. Alexis will follow Robin van Persie, Samir Nasri, Bacary Sagna and Emmanuel Adebayor to the city, among others. Hopefully the Gunners at least spend the reported £35m well.