It would appear that Arsene Wenger has done it again. Recently named Arsenal.com player of the month for the second time in a row - Thomas Vermaelen is quickly proving himself a world class player and almost undoubtedly the signing of the summer.
You can throw the who's who of footballing talent into the mix and suggest that the signing of the summer is Cristiano Ronaldo, or Kaka or Xabi Alonso. At £80million, £55million, and £30million respectively it is hard to see how an overall bargain has been achieved there. At a mere £10million and a goal return of 5 from defence already this season, Vermaelen has shown that the megabucks are not always needed.
Elsewhere in the Premier League, Darren Bent, who i believe has always been a quality player, is proving a snip at £16.5million. With a return of 7 goals in the league already this season, Bent is starting to show some of the form he once had with Charlton. At Tottenham, he had found his chances in the first team extremely limited, largely spent warming the bench for Robbie Keane or Dimitar Berbatov.
Steve Bruce has done some excellent summer business at the Stadium of Light, not only has he secured a guaranteed goal scorer and almost perfect strike partner for Kenwyne Jones, he has also grabbed one of the most promising English central midfielders in the country in Lee Cattermole, and Lorik Cana, one of the most solid midfield rocks in the French league last season for a combined £11million. With finds such as Wilson Palacios (albeit with a little help from Arsene Wenger), Maynor Figueroa and Hugo Rodallega, Bruce has already built a reputation for finding hidden gems.
Players like Sebastien Bassong and Alberto Aquilani may prove in time to be huge signings for Tottenham and Liverpool respectively provided they can stay injury free, but until now Thomas Vermaelen has certainly been this summer's "Super Signing".
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