This archive report was first published on 27 July 2019.
July 27, 2019 - Belgian defender Thomas Vermaelen has joined Japanese side Vissel Kobe, becoming the fourth former Barcelona player to sign with the club.
Vermaelen, 33, joins a team that includes Andres Iniesta, David Villa, and Sergi Samper, who are currently ranked 15th in the 18-team J.League.
"When the offer came I was very excited to come to this team," Vermaelen said at his unveiling. "I think it is a very ambitious team, if you look at the signings that they have done in the past, with Andreas (Iniesta), David Villa, Sergi Samper and Lukas Podolski."
Vermaelen, who has 70 caps for Belgium and played for Arsenal from 2009-2014, had been without a club since leaving Barcelona at the end of the season. He made 34 appearances for the Catalan side, plagued by injuries and behind the likes of Gerard Pique in the pecking order at the Nou Camp.
Vermaelen's move is the latest indicator of the growing connection between Barcelona and Vissel Kobe, who are owned by Hiroshi Mikitani, the CEO of Rakuten, Barcelona's main shirt sponsor. The two clubs are set to play each other in a pre-season friendly later on Saturday.
"I played the last couple of years in Barcelona and I learnt a lot there," Vermaelen said. "I think that is what they ask of me, to bring the experience of what I had in Barcelona, to bring that over here, I think that is what the owner wants."
Vermaelen plans to bring his experience to Vissel Kobe, playing out from the back and aggressively defensively, as he did in Barcelona.
