Manchester United Set to Table £35m Bid for Mesut Ozil Before He Leaves Arsenal for Free in Summer

With Mesut Ozil's contract at Arsenal set to run dry in the summer, Manchester United are supposedly preparing to table a bid worth £35m in order to tempt the Gunners to part ways with their German playmaker during the January transfer window - according to a report published by Mirror.

Ozil, 29, is yet to pen a renewal at the Emirates and it's still unclear to whether he will opt to prolong his stay. With this in mind, United's financial department have given Jose Mourinho the green light to offer his north-London counterparts an opportunity to cash in on the stalling midfield metronome.

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Arsene Wenger will be mindful of the funds the Red Devils are armed with, as it's emerged that Mourinho has been gifted £80m to spend in the mid-season window by the Glazer family, the club's wealthy owners.

However, if Ozil is ultimately to pack his bags for the Theatre of Dreams, he will allegedly only do so if United stump-up a mega wage package, similar to the £300k-a-week deal Wayne Rooney accumulated during his glittering career with the Premier League giants.

An influential protagonist in Arsenal's engine room, Ozil has scored four goals this term and has also provided five assists in 18 appearances - Wenger would presumably be eager to continue his services past the summer given his command on match-day proceedings.

But if Ozil is indeed destined to depart his current employers prematurely, Mourinho - who would ultimately prefer to capture the former Real Madrid star for free - is aware of Paris Saint-Germain's and Bayern Munich's standing interest, so be prepared for a battle of the cash saga to commence.