Official: Arsenal Captain Thomas Vermaelen Completes £15m Barcelona Move, Signs Five-Year Deal At Camp Nou

Alan Duffy

9th, August 2014

5 Comments

By Alan Duffy

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So much for transfer embargoes

After weeks of talks and media speculation, Arsenal’s Belgian captain Thomas Vermaelen has finally made the move to the Nou Camp. Over the last season or so, the centre-half has struggled to secure a starting berth with the Gunners as Arsene Wenger favoured the Per Mertesacker/Laurent Koscielny partnership.

28-year-old Vermaelen, who spent five years in north London, had also been linked with a move to Louis van Gaal’s Manchester United, but reports that the Red Devils rejected a swap deal involving Chris Smalling moving to the Emirates left the door open for the former Ajax captain’s move to Spain.

The sum of £15million for a player who has struggled with his form and who is in his last year of contract is surely good business for Arsenal. However, it now leaves them short at the back, with youngster Callum Chambers surely not ready yet to deputise for Mertesacker and Koscielny for the whole season on his own?

(Photo: fcbarcelona.com)

Posted in Arsenal, Barcelona, La Liga, Newsnow, Transfers & Rumours

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5 Comments

  1. Chris says:

    Healthy £15m wedge for a third-choice defender who had the choice of joining a domestic rival on higher wages for £10m?

    Monsieur Wenger’s spate of good business continues…

  2. doodleB says:

    Chris you are still a git

  3. Grant says:

    Now if we could only buy a few of the players we need. Like a center back or two and a central midfield destroyer.

  4. RedTillImDead says:

    Funny how Barca keep photoshopping the faces onto what looks like a fifa body. Why not just wait for the real thing?

    Or hire a better designer…

  5. Jarren says:

    I thought the design was awful on the Suarez press release due to his ban, but apparently not.

    This is just bizarre. Do they actually employ a graphic designer, or just ask the tea lady to fiddle around on Amiga 500 Deluxe Paint?

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