The Belgian, who was at the Gunners for five seasons, knows from experience that his former club will battle hard in Tuesday’s second leg
If there is one player in the Barça squad who knows all about Arsenal, then that man is Thomas Vermaelen. The Belgian defender was at the Gunners for five years, and was first team captain until his move to Barça in the summer of 2014.
Ahead of Tuesday’s second leg, which comes after the Catalans won 2-0 in London, he says in an interview with Barça TV and www.fcbarcelona.com that “it won’t be an easy game at all. Although we have a small lead, you can never say that they are out. They have very quick players and that makes them dangerous. We’ll need to concentrate.”[[CITA_1]]
He also speaks about the similarities between the way Barça and Arsenal play, saying that “they are two different teams, but also very similar in the way they play. They look to play a passing game and keep the ball on the ground. They don’t go for long balls.”
On Barça’s chances of becoming the first team to win back-to-back titles in the Champions Leagues, he comments that “it would be incredible to win it again, but there’s still a long way to go. There are lots of games left we’ll have to work hard if we want to do it.”