Arsenal signing Gabriel Paulista takes Thomas Vermaelen's number five shirt

Arsenal have confirmed that new signing Gabriel Paulista will wear the number five shirt following his move from Villarreal.

The North London outfit confirmed the arrival of the defender yesterday for a fee reported to be in the region of £15m.

Now, the club have revealed that Paulista will wear the shirt vacated by Thomas Vermaelen following the centre-back's move to Barcelona last summer.

Paulista spent 18 months at Villarreal and is yet to make a senior appearance for his nation of Brazil.

A photo posted by Arsenal Official (@arsenal) on Jan 29, 2015 at 2:13am PST