Arsenal have reportedly made a surprise bid to re-sign former captain Thomas Vermaelen from Barcelona.

According to reports in Catalonia, the Spanish champions are now considering whether to offload the 30-year-old centre-back, who has made just 11 appearances since he moved from the Emirates in 2014.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is in the market for an experienced central defender following the loss of Per Mertesacker to injury and has been linked with bids for Jonny Evans and Shkodran Mustafi in recent days.

Serie A outfit Roma have also been linked with a £13m bid for Vermaelen, who was signed to Barcelona for £15m but now has a market value of just £3.4m, according to Transfermarkt.

During his five years at Arsenal, the Belgian notched up 110 league appearances and contributed 13 goals.