[FromTheBench]

Didn't watch but Seems he was poor playing LB but from reading comments about the game, seems almost all the dutch team barring De Jong and maybe Sneijder was poor.

Just going off stats it doesn't look too bad for him in terms of defensive contribution or passing and i saw in highlights had one good potential headed assist for RVP too which he missed.

 

[::sonny::]

I don't think he played bad.

 

[Offside]

I presume it was partley because he has played CM for the last 2-3 weeks and now he is playing LB.

The guy behind this account definitely puts things like that out for RT's. He knows a load of United fans will be all over a Tweet like that. Total exaggeration, even though he wasn't good I'm sure he's had worse games.

 

[::sonny::]

He is a solid player, but his game has no particular creativity

 

[golazo]

Wouldn't take anything out of the performance overnight as he'll be playing CM for us, like others have already said.

Looks like he's a genuine goal scoring threat as well, going by that Youtube vid. Looking forward to seeing him in our side! He's no Vidal or Schweinsteiger, but let's face it, Fletcher & Clev couldn't even beat relegation quality CM pairs...so he's going to be a huge upgrade on that at least

 

[bosnian_red]

Didn't watch the game, but from everything I heard from Ajax supporters, he was never that great at left back. Just average even for the Dutch league playing there, but was a completely different player when played in midfield, hence he won the footballer of the year.

 

[SATA]

Everyone has looked shite playing for their country these days, unless you are Di Maria. So I wouldn't worry at all. I mean, look at Rooney for example

 

[Zoo]

 

[Drifter]

Well he won't be playing left back .Had a poor game there last night.

 

[Xaviesta]

Well he won't be playing left back .

The ignorant media would have you believe otherwise.

 

[ricky-romeo]

Unless shaw and rojo both are out at the same time(going to happen though knowing our luck), then blind will be playing in midfield for us.

 

[Sarni]

Everyone has looked shite playing for their country these days, unless you are Di Maria. So I wouldn't worry at all. I mean, look at Rooney for example

Rooney looks terrible playing for anyone to be honest.

 

[red_7]

according to whoscored.com he has the 2nd best rating of all starters for Holland against Italy.

Don't know how he defended but on the ball he looked better in midfield in that highlight video.

85% passing including 7/10 long balls being accurate. Total passes 78 (2nd highest of the team)

3 Interceptions, again 2nd best after de Jong with 4.

So, if this was his worst game for Holland then his worst game has been better than our average midfield performance last season.

 

[DomesticTadpole]

according to whoscored.com he has the 2nd best rating of all starters for Holland against Italy.

Don't know how he defended but on the ball he looked better in midfield in that highlight video.

85% passing including 7/10 long balls being accurate. Total passes 78 (2nd highest of the team)

3 Interceptions, again 2nd best after de Jong with 4.

So, if this was his worst game for Holland then his worst game has been better than our average midfield performance last season.

I was just glancing at the game. What I saw he was neat and tidy. I would have been more worried if we had signed Stefan de Vrij, I thought he looked dodgy.

 

[bishblaize]

Well, at least we know he can pass backwards 10 yards...

 

[nevillestache]

This seems to be trending on Twitter even though it's from a World Cup game!

 

[Xaviesta]

Even the great players miss place a pass.

 

[Bwuk]

Don't look too much into a friendly game when he's playing at leftback ffs...

 

[Speak]

Highlights are mostly of him playing left back. I don't think he's all that good at left back.
Watch a highlight video (I know, I know...) of him playing midfield for Ajax, and he looks a different player.


Really quite excited to see him play there.

 

[sincher]

"I'm a good kicker of the ball"

That's a good start.

Blinding!

 

[Edgar Allan Pillow]

I've not seen him play that much. Would we have picedk him if not for LvG?

Hope he comes good as I think he is the most critical of all purchases.

 

[FacerTheRed]

As soon he came in defensive mid he played better. kept the ball moving, played as an anchor so he kept back in case a player has no options. He plays the simple game like carrick which united defiantly needs. When he is surrounded by the likes of Di Maria, Mata, Falcao, Rooney, Herrera, RVP and so on. He'll have them options to pull them killer passes which he does have in his locker and provide assistance to the newly back 3 or 4 line.

 

[Pogue Mahone]

As soon he came in defensive mid he played better. kept the ball moving, played as an anchor so he kept back in case a player has no options. He plays the simple game like carrick which united defiantly needs. When he is surrounded by the likes of Di Maria, Mata, Falcao, Rooney, Herrera, RVP and so on. He'll have them options to pull them killer passes which he does have in his locker and provide assistance to the newly back 3 or 4 line.

He does and he doesn't. One of Carrick's greatest (and most un-appreciated) strengths is his ability to pass the ball forwards. Haven't watched much of Blind (and it was a poor game to judge him on) but he seems a lot more conservative with his choice of pass.

I do wonder what he brings to the team that Cleverley doesn't. The type of holding midfield performance Cleverley put in against Arsenal in London last year, for example. Is Blind quicker? Stronger in the tackle? What are his great strengths as a midfielder? Enlighten me, eridvisie-watching caftards.

 

[Invictus]

He does and he doesn't. One of Carrick's greatest (and most un-appreciated) strengths is his ability to pass the ball forwards. Haven't watched much of Blind (and it was a poor game to judge him on) but he seems a lot more conservative with his choice of pass.

I do wonder what he brings to the team that Cleverley doesn't. The type of holding midfield performance Cleverley put in against Arsenal in London last year, for example. Is Blind quicker? Stronger in the tackle? What are his great strengths as a midfielder? Enlighten me, eridvisie-watching caftards.

Blind is very intelligent and good tactically IMO, that's what sets him apart from Tom in the anchor position who seems lost at times. He may not be the fastest or most physical player on the pitch but because he can get into "heat spots", it become easier to diagnose opposition play as a defensive midfielder. He's been coached well by De Boer. Kind of a poor man's Busquets than a Carrick clone, good metronomic passing range but not very expansive. He can't dictate the tempo of games from a deeper position like Michael can. Very good in the tackle too but he's no Keane or Vieira. One thing I've noticed instead of clattering in, there's a sense of dispossessing the opponent rather than breaking up play much like Busquets. Which works out well because then you can immediately launch a counter or threaten the opposition backline instead of conceding free-kicks.

 

[Pogue Mahone]

Blind is very intelligent and good tactically IMO, that's what sets him apart from Tom in the anchor position who seems lost at times. He may not be the fastest or most physical player on the pitch but because he can get into "heat spots", it become easier to diagnose opposition play as a defensive midfielder. He's been coached well by De Boer. Kind of a poor man's Busquets than a Carrick clone, good metronomic passing range but not very expansive. He can't dictate the tempo of games from a deeper position like Michael can. Very good in the tackle too but he's no Keane or Vieira. One thing I've noticed instead of clattering in, there's a sense of dispossessing the opponent rather than breaking up play much like Busquets. Which works out well because then you can immediately launch a counter or threaten the opposition backline instead of conceding free-kicks.

Ok, thanks. Sort of Carrick without the penetrative passing, combined with Busquets without sumptuous skill.

On that limited basis (and what I saw yesterday) I reckon he will divide fans massively but be a useful enough signing all the same. All the sideways/backwards passing will raise a few hackles, that's for sure.

 

[Invictus]

Ok, thanks. Sort of Carrick without the penetrative passing, combined with Busquets without sumptuous skill.

On that limited basis (and what I saw yesterday) I reckon he will divide fans massively but be a useful enough signing all the same. All the sideways/backwards passing will raise a few hackles, that's for sure.

Yup pretty much. A lot of fans will unreasonably expect him to be the midfield messiah they crave but Blind is clearly not that guy and might never be that guy. What he is though is a consistently solid no-frills midfielder that can act as a placeholder until we get genuine quality in. Even as it stands he's probably our best midfielder bar Carrick (circa 2012/ 2013) and Herrera which just proves how desperate the situation really is.

 

[Dunk]

WOW, Carrick is a penetrative passer now? The guy is a cautious pussy who mainly passes backwards and sideways and doesn't have the balls to go for 50-50 challenges. Hopefully, Blind will be a few steps up over Carrick.

 

[rotherham_red]

If he can be the 'mop' in the midfield, allowing the likes of Herrera and Di Maria, maybe Strootman after January, to be their expansive selves, then as far as I am concerned, he will have repaid his fee and then some.

In the big games also, I wouldn't be surprised to see him and Carrick as the double pivots either. Think there is some definite potential for that to occur, IMO.

 

[J-Stander]

WOW, Carrick is a penetrative passer now? The guy is a cautious pussy who mainly passes backwards and sideways and doesn't have the balls to go for 50-50 challenges. Hopefully, Blind will be a few steps up over Carrick.

That's harsh. He was an extremely penetrative passer in his prime.

 

[AngeloHenriquez]

WOW, Carrick is a penetrative passer now? The guy is a cautious pussy who mainly passes backwards and sideways and doesn't have the balls to go for 50-50 challenges. Hopefully, Blind will be a few steps up over Carrick.

Thought the same..

 

[Invictus]

WOW, Carrick is a penetrative passer now? The guy is a cautious pussy who mainly passes backwards and sideways and doesn't have the balls to go for 50-50 challenges. Hopefully, Blind will be a few steps up over Carrick.

Here we go again.

EDIT : BRB with proof to the contrary.

 

[AngeloHenriquez]

That's harsh. He was an extremely penetrative passer in his prime.

He really wasn't, better distribution and vision, but never incisive forward through balls, that really wasn't his game.

 

[Pogue Mahone]

WOW, Carrick is a penetrative passer now? The guy is a cautious pussy who mainly passes backwards and sideways and doesn't have the balls to go for 50-50 challenges. Hopefully, Blind will be a few steps up over Carrick.

From April last year. Number of forward passes made over the 2012/13 season. More than any other footballer in the whole of Europe.

See what I mean, though?

With this kind of crap being spewed about Carrick, poor wee Daley is gonna have a hell of time winning fans round. I also think we'll badly miss that sort of progressive passing. It's why everything was so slooooow with Clev and Fletch in midfield. Hopefully this is where Hererra comes in.

 

[golazo]

This seems to be trending on Twitter even though it's from a World Cup game!

You can see what he's trying to do. Curl it with the outside of his foot to the full back (or CB it looks like?) opposite to him... but when he took that first touch, the ball continued to move towards him, causing 1 of the most epic mishits of all time

 

[Pogue Mahone]

He really wasn't, better distribution and vision, but never incisive forward through balls, that really wasn't his game.

Not through balls but forward passing really was his game. Few better at passing the ball from deep areas into the feet of the front four.

 

[J-Stander]

He really wasn't, better distribution and vision, but never incisive forward through balls, that really wasn't his game.

I thought he was. When we were near the opposition box he played some excellent balls forward into the feet/in front of our players. Not saying it was the main point to his game but he wasn't a backward and sideways passed as the poster I quoted said.

 

[red_7]

Carrick carried a hole midfield that season. He was very good that year we last won the title!

 

[Herman Van Rompuy]

He's much better as a holding midfielder.

 

[Dunk]

So absence DOES make the heart grow fonder! I can't wait till Carrick's back and we all start moaning about ineffectual he is as a centre-mid. Why do you guys think we're in this pickle in the first place? It's because isn't good enough. The look of fear is always etched on his face.

 

[Invictus]

Take this haters :




Last season despite being out of form, Carrick had 73.9 % forward passing rate per 90 mins.
Modric and Alonso who were among the "better" midfielder across Europe had 67.3 % and 69.9 % respectively.
Caf darling Kroos and someone branded the "best midfielder in the world" by some had a tremendous 64.9 %.
Gunodgan in 2012/ 2013 had 64.6 %.

He also had more key passes than Alonso and more than Gundogan from 2012/ 2013 and about the same pass length as the others.

In Fergie's last season, the forward passing percentage was over 75 % !! Sideways/ backward passer my ass.