The Arsenal Blog

According to reports that have persisted with Arsenal in the past and now reappeared across several media outlets today, it seems as if the dominating Spanish club of FC Barcelona are still interested in Thomas Vermaelen despite a poor season from the Belgium international.

Perhaps it’s just because he is Arsenal’s captain and so Barcelona feel it’s necessary to table a bid for the player, like they have done several times in the past, but I honestly find it quite strange to why their interest remains, that is if the reports are deemed to be true in the first place. Vermaelen endured what was his worst season at the club since his arrival in 2009 from Dutch club Ajax.  ...........Read more

Hello guys. I never thought that I would be writing an Arsenal article of this nature anytime soon, let alone today of all days. But something is up that should worry all Gooners. The news that hit the airwaves just before last season ended is that there are significant sums of money coming in from the puma sponsorship deal and the huge windfall that EPL clubs will be sharing as well, thanks to the newly negotiated Television rights.  ...........Read more

For the first time in 2-3 years, Arsenal fans thought that this summer we were almost certain not to lose our key players and then have to almost start from the beginning and build up our team once again, just before the season starts.

It’s known to all that in the last few years we have lost Van Persie, Fabregas, Nasri and Clichy. And then even before that Adebayor, Hleb and even King Henry. Now you may think now Adebayor wasn’t a great loss but at the time he was one of our better players and there’s a reason why Man City paid £25 million for the current Spurs man.
However now with Walcott signed on, Cazorla only recently joining and Wilshere being ever loyal to Arsenal, it looked as if this year we would see no major outgoings from the Arsenal team.  ...........Read more

When thinking about who have been the best players for Arsenal this season, there are quite a few candidates, but over the last two months there can be only one winner, Laurent Koscielny. The French international saved the Gunners at both ends again yesterday and without him we would not even have been in the position going in to the game. As the interviewer said after the game, his goal was worth around £30 million to the club.  ...........Read more

Arsenal are on a fantastic run of results lately, with seven wins in a nine-game unbeaten run which has propelled them back into the Champions League places. The famous Arsenal legend Tony Adams believes that this has been helped by the fact that Wenger has finally decided to play with a settled defence in every game.

Adams said: “What they have done in recent weeks is become a lot tighter at the back, and people like Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny have certainly benefitted from playing together consistently.

“Ok, that has made it tough for Thomas Vermaelen, who has done so much for the club since he arrived.  ...........Read more

The rumours about a possible summer departure from Arsenal by club vice-captain Thomas Vermaelen have blown up in flames after the Belgian star was seen in a bar and photographed next to Barcelona’s star man Carlos Puyol.

The Catalans have been linked with a move for the Belgian for a long time now ever since their talks for Milan’s Brazilian Thiago Silva failed to go through.

Vermaelen expressed his wish to play at Arsenal for the remaining of his career if possible, but with such an important contender as Barcelona on the wire now, you can never know what will happen.  ...........Read more

Barcelona are in need of defensive cover. Carlos Puyol is nearing the end of his career and if he gets injured again, the Catalan team will be in trouble. At the top of their wish list is Spanish international Javi Martinez, but the Spanish press think that the deal is dead in the water and he is now out of the betting on www.OddsWinner.com to join the Spanish giants.

The bad news is that Thomas Vermaelen is next on the list, according to The Mirror. Arsenal’s centre back and vice-captain is very highly regarded by Barcelona, and his ability to play at left back would give them much needed cover in this position as well.  ...........Read more

Thomas Vermaelen has become one of Arsenal’s most consistent performers, and has formed a rock solid defensive partnership with Laurent Koscielny. He also comes up with some crucial goals, like the last minute winner against Newcastle in March.

Some bad news coming out of Spain is that Barcelona are about to abandon their attempts to pry Thiago Silva from AC Milan and might be planning a bid for Vermaelen, reports the Daily Mail. Milan are asking too much for their Brazilian defender, but Barcelona are desperate for defensive cover and are looking for a long term replacement for Carlos Puyol, who is getting towards the end of his career.  ...........Read more

Thomas Vermaelen was appointed vice-captain to Robin Van Persie when Fabregas left Arsenal last summer, and he obviously enjoys the responsibility. Of course there are many Gooners fully expecting him to be prmoted IF Van Persie leaves in the next couple of months and it sounds like his keen on the idea.

Vermaelen said: “When the boss made me vice-captain it made me proud,”

“I am really happy to be vice-captain of such a big club like Arsenal.

“I feel the responsibility to help the captain in his role as well, and of course that means the Club and the boss give you a lot of confidence.”  ...........Read more

I know, I know, we all love a central defender who goes forward from time to time and aids the attack, and we love it when defenders like Chelsea’s David Luiz, or our own Thomas Vermaelen scores a goal from action or offers an assist, but look where that took Arsenal!  ...........Read more