Barcelona defender Thomas Vermaelen arouses Chelsea interest

Chelsea are interested in signing Barcelona defender Thomas Vermaelen, as well as considering Valencia's Aymen Abdennour.

According to the Metro, Guus Hiddink's team are searching for a new centre-back after letting in 34 goals in 23 games, with captain John Terry far from his peak.

Vermaelen is on the Blue agenda. The Belgian centre-back is remembered in the Premier League as a good player after his performances with Arsenal.

However, Vermaelen still has Luis Enrique's trust as a the third choie centre-back, ahead of Marc Bartra and Jeremy Mathieu, with the latter more often used at left-back.