Tottenham manager, Jose Mourinho, has claimed he was never interested in signing Willian in the summer due to his reported £250,000-a-week wages.

After seven years at Chelsea, Willian was looking for his last big contract at 32 and made it clear he wanted a three-year deal.

Arsenal stepped in and sealed a deal for the Brazil midfielder.

Willian has struggled to make an impact since his arrival from Stamford Bridge, failing to score so far.

He is, however, set to start in the North London derby on Sunday and it will be a reunion of sorts with Mourinho, who brought him to English football in 2013 after beating Tottenham to his signature.

But speaking ahead of the match, Mourinho revealed Spurs didn’t have the money to enter a bidding war with Arsenal for Willian.

“We don’t have money for Willian,” Mourinho said.

“We cannot pay the wages that he gets at Arsenal so I didn’t want to waste our time because we cannot pay these wages.

“He is still dangerous, he is still one of the best players in the Premier League. Apart from that, he is a good friend.”

DailyPost