It’s been difficult to watch Thomas Vermaelen’s career implode over the last season and a half. The Belgian bruiser has transformed from the Gunners best defender, into a bench-warmer. He’s gone from club captain to club mascot and I can only imagine what he’s making of the whole experience.
He’s made just 11 appearances for Arsenal this season, which is a far cry away from the 39 he made last year and the 40 he made the year before that. Injuries aside, there’s a good reason why he hasn’t been getting game time over the last 12 months: his form has left a lot to be desired.
It strikes me that the Captaincy has weighed heavily upon his shoulders. Last year he looked like a man under constant pressure and it seems that he was completely unable to deal with it.
He missed the deciding penalty kick against League Two side Bradford City in the League Cup and he was atrocious in the first leg of Arsenal’s Champions League showdown with Bayern Munich. In general, he spent a lot of last season running around like a headless chicken, diving into tackles and giving away needless free-kicks. Soon enough the costly errors racked up and he had to be dropped.
This brings me to The Metro‘s claim that Manchester United are ‘keen’ on bringing the Belgian centre-back to Old Trafford as Nemanja Vidic’s replacement.
All this talk about Thomas Vermaelen struggling under pressure may make you wonder if he’s really suited for a role at Manchester United. After all, it’s not like Old Trafford is a stress free zone, is it? David Moyes is the most scrutinized man in world football and his side are a magnet for criticism and teasing.
The fact that the aforementioned source mentions a £12m price-tag for Vermaelen (£2m more than Arsenal spent on him back in 2009), won’t make this deal look any better to United fans.
Despite this, I can’t help but feel that this would be a good move on the part of David Moyes. For all the criticism that Vermaelen has received over the last 12 months, he’s still a world-class defender. Once he has his confidence back and is playing regular first team football, he’ll look more than worthy of his price-tag.
You don’t go from hero to zero overnight. Vermaelen has plenty left to give and I’d love to see him prove this at Old Trafford.
What’s your take? Should Manchester United consider signing Thomas Vermaelen?
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