Thomas Vermaelen has said that he contemplated leaving Arsenal during the summer transfer window, but ended up staying at the club. Now, he says that he does not regret and is ready to stay with the club for a long time because he believes that Arsenal are making a lot of progress.
Thomas Vermaelen has been one of the important defenders for Arsenal in the last few years since moving from Ajax in 2009. However, it is thought that he grew tired of the fact that Arsenal were unable to challenge for the top trophies. So far, he has made 43 League appearances for Arsenal, but he has already grown up to the stature of being a suitable replacement for William Gallas.
The 26-year-old has been absent in the Arsenal defence for most of the season, but he has returned from injury to a distant to the Arsenal team in a crucial stage of the season. Even though Arsenal started extremely poorly, they have since gone on an excellent run that has put them in an excellent position to challenge for the Champions League qualification places. Despite this excellent run, the prospect of them winning the Premier League title looks to be faint.
Speaking after his return from injury, Thomas Vermaelen said: “I thought long and hard about my contract with Arsenal – for a really long time. I knew people outside the club had doubts. The most important thing is that I feel happy. I’ve only really played one full season Arsenal, so I wanted to give something back to the club, and stayed.”
Thomas Vermaelen scored an own goal against Fulham, but was quick to rectify it by scoring at the other end to equalise for Arsenal.