Ex-Arsenal man celebrates Barcelona Champions League win despite not playing

Thomas Vermaelen with his Champions League winners' medal

Thomas Vermaelen was pictured as all smiles with a winners’ medal around his neck after Barcelona’s Champions League final win over Juventus on Saturday night – despite not playing a single minute of the Spanish club’s European campaign.
 
The former Arsenal captain joined the Catalan giants from the north London club in a £15m deal last summer but failed to break into the first team at Camp Nou.
 
Indeed, Vermaelen was limited to just one single appearance for the Catalan club – a 63-minute run-out during the 2-2 draw with Deportivo La Coruna last month.
 
However, that did not stop the 29-year-old Belgium international from celebrating Barcelona’s Champions League triumph on Saturday as the Spanish side wrapped up a treble of trophies during his first season at the club.
 
Vermaelen posted the picture above on his Instagram account and wrote: “Long live Barca #treble #fcb.”
 
Last month, the defender congratulated Barcelona for their La Liga title win and declared his desire to feature more next season, writing on Instagram: “Congrats to my teammates for winning the league yesterday. Hopefully I will be able to contribute more next year.”