Are Barcelona about to beat Manchester United to this £10m signing?

Whilst Arsenal captain Thomas Vermaelen hasn’t been in form for the best part of the last year, he’s still managing to attract some fairly heavy-weight suitors this summer.

I’d blame it on the lack of quality, affordable centre-back options out there. That has to be the reason why both Manchester United and Barcelona are rumoured to be interested in the big Belgian bruiser.

Don’t get me wrong: he’s not a bad player by any means. He was just wildly inconsistent last season. He’s also struggled to earn regular game-time thanks to Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker’s rise to prominence.

With his route to first-team action more or less blocked off, it would surprise nobody if he were to move on this summer. The real question concerns where he’ll end up.

According to The Metro, Barcelona have ‘stolen a march’ on Manchester United, by placing a £10m bid for the player. Whether or not this is enough to seal the deal remains to be seen. One thing’s for sure, it’ll attract the player’s attention. If Vermaelen fancies a move to a top La Liga club, he may well start clamouring for a move.

Even if the bid is a little below Arsenal’s current estimation of the player, it may be one that Arsene Wenger considers. If it means that Manchester United miss out on a good option, then The Professor may consider that a victory of some sort.

It’ll be interesting to see whether Wenger looks to do what’s best footballistically (that’s one of his words) or financially. In this case, it’s not clear what would be the best option for the club as a whole.

So long as he brings in a replacement option, The Gunners will certainly survive the loss of Thomas Vermaelen. Whether he’ll help to guide Manchester United back to consistency and success, remains to be seen. It’ll certainly be interesting to watch this one play out.

What’s your take? Where does Thomas Vermaelen’s future lie?

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