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Arsenal consider offloading captain Thomas Vermaelen
ARSENAL are weighing up whether to cut their losses with Thomas Vermaelen.
The Belgian defender joined the Gunners four years ago but has failed to live up to his hype, with Arsene Wenger preferring to partner Laurent Koscielny with Per Mertesacker at the heart of the defence.
Some high-profile blunders have made him lose favour and Wenger wants to shore up his defence as he looks to challenge for silverware next season, if not launch a title assault.
Barcelona were targeting Liverpool's Daniel Agger and Arsenal's Vermaelen, with the latter believing to be valued at £15m.
Football website CaughtOffside believes that with Carles Puyol appearing to be winding down on his long and gilded career, Vermaelen could be of interest if the price is right.
The Camp Nou giants are also believed to be looking at Manchester City's £20m rated defender Vincent Kompany after being snubbed in their bid to sign Borussia Dortmund's Mats Hummels.