Thomas Vermaelen loan move to AS Roma could cost Arsenal dear

Arsenal have received a blow to their coffers following Thomas Vermaelen's loan move from Barcelona to AS Roma. Mundo Deportivo claims that, as a consequence of the deal, the Gunners will not receive a big part of the add-ons included in the sale of the Belgium international to La Liga giants in the summer of 2014.

Barcelona signed the centre-back, now 30, from Arsenal two summers ago, along with Jeremy Mathieu from Valencia, to fill the gap left by the retirement of Carles Puyol. The Catalans agreed to pay around €18.8m (£16.1m, $20.9m) to the Gunners to lure Vermaelen to the Nou Camp after Manchester United were also linked with his services.

Mundo Deportivo now claims it was not a fixed fee, as the agreement included multiple add-ons. The Catalan publication says Barcelona only paid an initial €10m to Arsenal, while the remaining €8.8m was performance-related.

Vermaelen only made 21 appearances for Barcelona during his first two seasons in La Liga, having spent almost all of his first season on the sidelines after suffering an injury during the Brazil World Cup 2014.

As a result Arsenal are likely to miss out on much of the €5m that was dependent on appearances, with a further €3.8m payment, according to Mundo Deportivo, only triggered if the club won two Champions Leagues during his time at the club.

If the report is correct, Arsenal will not receive this money either, as Barca took just one Champions League title, in 2015, in that period.

All is not lost. Vermaelen may yet return to Barcelona should Roma decline to secure his services permanently at the end of the campaign. But with the Catalans reportedly trying to part ways with the Belgian for good, only for the Serie A giants to insist on a loan deal, Arsenal probably shouldn't bank on any further windfall from the 2014 deal.