Thomas Vermaelen yesterday completed his move from Arsenal to Barcelona by signing a five-year deal with the Spanish side.

The fee for the 28-year-old defender, who has played 150 times for Arsenal in five seasons, is undisclosed.

Signed from Ajax in 2009, Vermaelen had been club captain for the Barclays Premier League side for the past two seasons but was frequently on the bench last term, with Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny the first-choice pairing at centre-back.

He made only 13 starts in all competitions and 21 appearances in total for Arsenal during the campaign, which concluded with him being an unused substitute in the Gunners' FA Cup final victory over Hull as they collected their first trophy in nine years.