Barcelona announce Vermaelen signing

Barcelona, Spain (SportsNetwork.com) - Barcelona announced Saturday that the club has signed Belgium defender Thomas Vermaelen from Arsenal on a five-year deal.

"I'm feel very happy," Vermaelen told Barcelona's official television outlet. "I'm very excited to play for this beautiful club. It's one of the best in the world. It's a dream for a lot of people to play for this club.

"You play with the best players in the world and I'm very honored to play with them. It means I can be a better player when I train every day with these players."

Vermaelen joined Arsenal from Ajax in 2009 and went on to make a total of 150 appearances for the Gunners across all competitions, often serving as the club's captain.

The 28-year-old becomes Barcelona's latest defensive addition under the guidance of new manager Luis Enrique, who marked his arrival at Camp Nou by signing Jeremy Mathieu from Valencia.