Arthur Vermeeren was once heralded as the jewel of Belgian football, a midfielder whose poise and vision at Royal Antwerp made him the most talked-about transfer prospect in Europe. By the age of 18 he had become the most coveted teenager on the continent, pursued by Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City, Barcelona and Tottenham. The Belgian Golden Shoe voters named him Best Youngster of the Year in 2024. Now, at 21, left out of Belgium’s World Cup 2026 squad by manager Rudi Garcia and with his club future unresolved, the question is unavoidable: how did Vermeeren, once seen as Europe’s next great midfield architect, become football’s most puzzling transfer afterthought?
The Antwerp years
The rise of Vermeeren at Royal Antwerp was swift and assured. Making his professional debut in August 2022 at just 17, the starlet quickly established himself as a regular starter and even captained the side in the Champions League. His defining moment came in December 2023, when he scored and was named man of the match in a 3-2 victory over Barcelona. Antwerp manager Mark Van Bommel told reporters ahead of the tie that he deliberately avoided speaking to Xavi, certain the Barcelona coach “would buy him immediately.” The comment captured the growing inevitability of a transfer and underlined how quickly his reputation was escalating
By then the young midfielder had already helped the Flemish club secure the Belgian Pro League and Cup double in 2022/23. His composure, vision and passing drew the Iniesta comparisons that would follow him for the next two years, and every elite club in Europe was watching closely.
Atlético Madrid: the first warning sign
His move to Atlético Madrid in January 2024 for €18m was supposed to confirm his trajectory. Instead, it stalled it. Under Diego Simeone, Vermeeren managed only 160 minutes across five appearances, a meagre return for a player arriving with such weight of expectation. After his debut against Rayo Vallecano he admitted he had no “good feelings”, a confession that hinted at the mismatch between his style and Simeone’s demands.
The signing of Conor Gallagher from Chelsea narrowed his path further, and within seven months Atlético sanctioned a loan to RB Leipzig with a €20m purchase obligation attached. For the watching clubs, the conclusion was obvious: the promise had dimmed, and Atlético had already moved on.
RB Leipzig: bought, then discarded
Leipzig’s handling of Vermeeren only deepened the pattern. The club triggered the €20m purchase obligation in January 2025, tying him down until 2029. Yet within months they sent him out on loan to Marseille. Without favour from the new coaching setup his involvement dwindled, and the decision to move him on again spoke volumes. A club that had just invested heavily concluded almost immediately that he was surplus to requirements. That was not misfortune, nor circumstance. It was a verdict.
Marseille: admired from afar, discarded up close
Vermeeren had long been described as a “little superstar” by those who tracked him closely, and De Zerbi was already a believer before a ball was kicked at Marseille. The numbers told a different story. According to FotMob, he averaged a rating of 6.59 across his Ligue 1 appearances, with no goals, one assist, and a red card in a 2-0 defeat to Nantes. When Marseille’s €20m purchase option came due, the club declined. Financial constraints were cited, which may have been true. The more uncomfortable reading was simpler: De Zerbi had watched him every day and chosen not to keep him.
The pattern that nobody is talking about
Three clubs. Three departures. The same conclusion reached independently by Simeone, Leipzig’s coaching staff and De Zerbi. Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City and Barcelona all made Arthur Vermeeren a transfer target when watching from afar, but none have returned. That distinction matters. Admiring a player from the outside, particularly one with the passing range and Champions League pedigree Vermeeren showed at 18, is very different from coaching him through a full season. Every club that has done the latter has decided he is not worth keeping. Across three countries and three football cultures, the gap between reputation and conviction has never closed.
Tottenham: De Zerbi’s gamble
Tottenham are among the clubs monitoring the Arthur Vermeeren transfer situation ahead of the summer, with Bild reporting in April 2026 that both Spurs and Inter Milan are following the 21-year-old as he prepares to return to RB Leipzig after Marseille declined to trigger their €20m purchase option. Leipzig’s asking price is reported to be between €30m and €35m. No formal offer has been confirmed by either club as of publication. De Zerbi, now in charge at Spurs, has personally requested the signing.
That full circle is striking. At 18, Vermeeren told Tottenham it was “a bit early” for a Premier League move, according to Het Belang van Limburg, when they first called in January 2024. At 21, after Atlético, Leipzig and Marseille, and absent from his country’s World Cup squad, he has become a target once more.
De Zerbi’s belief in him is genuine and should not be dismissed. Whether a manager’s faith is enough to unlock what three clubs could not is the question Tottenham supporters should be sitting with before this deal is done.
