Daley Blind | Ajax Performances
- Thread starter MyOnlySolskjaer
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Van Gaal didn't really convert him, Blind was a center back throughout most of his youth career and later filled in there sometimes for the first team at Ajax too, kind of ended up on left back and midfield at Ajax out of necessity, probably didn't help that Vertonghen and Alderweireld were the center backs at Ajax when he broke into the first team. But he's always said that center back is his preferred position.
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Just such an intelligent football player. I bet Smalling misses his old partner...
I always point out Smallings best form was with Blind next to him so Blind could do all the thinking for him and Smalling could concentrate on actually defending instead of trying to lead the line like he does now.
He was never first choice and was the irony was he only playing that night due to Baillys stupid red card in the semi and Rojo being injured.
Blind was always a class footballer and while it sucks he is outstanding for Ajax while we suck, he wanted to leave and cant blame him.
We should never have let him go.
Blind is just yet another casualty of hiring and firing managers with wildly different ideas on how the game should be played.
Blind is just yet another casualty of hiring and firing managers with wildly different ideas on how the game should be played.
Well yeah something like that, he did in fact have some off days for us playing as a CB. One could argue that his performance at West Ham where we lost 3-2 (last match in their old stadium) is what cost Van Gaal his job in the end, because a draw there instead of losing and we'd have finished one point above City that year. Personally I think Blind made a brilliant choice going back to Ajax, and he's at the perfect place for him right.
What's also fascinating is how little Blind's quite brilliant building up from the back helped us with creating chances in the end under Van Gaal's possesion based team, because we ended with such an incredible low amount of goals in his last season and barely created anything in plenty of matches. Now in this Ajax team Blind's doing pretty much the exact same things, and it really helps to take their team to the next level.
Regarding Mourinho, I think it's quite obvious what he wanted when we didn't sign Davinson Sanchez after the EL final but went for Lindelof instead, he wanted someone who had composure and was comfortable on the ball like Blind only slightly bigger and stronger, and faster of course. At this moment Lindelof hasn't really been an upgrade on Blind though, but I guess he's also 5 years younger.
All our CB's have off days. He wasn't any different. Most of the time he was more positive though.
Well that was because we had a midfield of Fellaini/Carrick/Herrera and forwards like Young,Mata and Rooney.
A real lack of pace and creativity. We kept the ball well but rarely ever got behind an opponent.
And Rooney in midfield at times probably! I still can't over how weird that season was though. When you watch the highlight reels from Blind that year you really see him playing lovely passes non stop and finding great solutions on the ball constantly, and we had a manager obsessed with possesion football on top of that, yet we created feck all and were the most uninspiring United I've ever seen. Before that season I always assumed that having someone who's good on the ball at CB will automatically improve the attacking quality of any team, period.
I guess the lesson from that really is like you say, you need players suited for that style on every position. Just a coach implementing the tactics and building properly from the back simply isn't enough.
Yep. The team played scared, we would often keep possession because we were scared to advance and lose it.
We added players like Di Maria who were far too risky for LVG and he lost patience with him. It was just a mish mash of styles.
Only towards the end when we added Martial + Rashford + Fosu Mensah did we start looking like a better team, and won the FA cup. Then it got ripped up with Mourinho.
CB of the year
All hail Mastermind Mourinho
Half of my posting history here consists of praising him. He was always too good for this mess of a club.
I’m not surprised in the slightest to see the performances he’s putting in, because he has a really special football brain that didn’t belong in a brainless club. We really are in a sad state.
I’m not surprised in the slightest to see the performances he’s putting in, because he has a really special football brain that didn’t belong in a brainless club. We really are in a sad state.
As he started his first game for United, I already told myself he was going the best United player. There were many moments in each game where we could create big chances if the deadwoods could be ready to cooperate. I was extremely tired of telling the people who criticized him and I was in shock then realized there are too many people on here who in-genuinely think they know what it takes to play football properly. Same thing for Kagawa, United teammates' positioning were so poor and I could tell Kagawa felt so surprised about that problem.
Was never convinced by him as a left back or centre midfielder but he had a very good season with us at centre back and I find it sad that he was dismissed by Jose for that role after the Man City game (Bailly was just as bad if not worse in that game).
And any other CB we have had since Rio/Vidic. Said even back then that he is our best CB, then Mourinho decided to bin him cause he's a caveman manager.
Players like Blind & Mkhitarayan for Bailly & Sanchez has been the reason our squad as a whole has gone down this season that make improvements.
I would have kept Blind over Lindelof, Bailly, Rojo and Jones but wouldn't say he was very good for us in the CB role. He lacked pace, was suspect on set-pieces and one on one & lacked aerial ability. We would still be asking to sign a starting CB if Blind was still here.
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Blind should never have been sold. But he is not a Jose type of player so it's obvious that he was sold.
Sjaakmeoff
Blind should have never been sold. One of the few solid signings we made post Fergie.
Completely agree. Every team needs a solid utility player who can cover in several positions
Did we insert a buy back clause?
Squad player? He looks better than every single member of our back 4
Blind, the best defender in world football. Period. Lol
He's exactly the right sort of player we need. Solid player, not full of himself, technically excellent, hard working, right attitude, not a prima donna, no dance moves...
What did we sell him for, about £15m? Is that 6 months of Sanchez' salary?!
What did we sell him for, about £15m? Is that 6 months of Sanchez' salary?!
I seem to be the only one to not be so impressed by his performance so far tonight. Think he is rather poor defensively and a bit lucky to not have conceded yet. Had some good passes but also been a bit sloppy. Not really bad, but not the super player everybody is talking about.
Agreed.
In fact the revisionism is quite extraordinary.
I've even been reading praise for LVG, which is shocking. LVG brought a brand of football, which was the most boring in our entire league.
Blind is well suited to the Dutch League and to a possession based team. Barcelona would be ideal for him, if he would like to step up.
Unless we switch to a possession based style of play (which we aren't), he is the wrong type of player for us.
How do I know this? Because I saw him play for us.
Showing why sold him in second half, he’s all over the place and just standing round watching. When game is played at his pace he’s a great player but he’s not been the huge loss a lot of people think.
Blind 73% and De Ligt 68% successful passes so far. Not too fond of that kind of stats normally but it is not good enough imo. Seem to be easily stressed.
Rubbish.
Ajax as a team have been all over the place. De ligt getting nutmegged at RW for the first goal. Hardly anything to do with Blind pushes further in to midfield constantly to play the passes as well as to be the first in the tackle because he has to make up for the lack of pace.
De ligt, tagliafico and the RB have been worse than Blind who hasn't been great in the 2nd half either; but hardly the reason we sold him.
We need players who can actually keep the ball! I'm not saying he's suddenly a great player, but he would be a hell of a lot better than most of our current defenders. He would be a fantastic player to have in our squad. Would rather see Blind in our team than Rojo, Darmian, Jones, Valencia, Young and Bailly. He's better than 6 of our current defence.
He is better than Lindelof who is scared of the ball and better than Jones and Smalling.
Yet we get told for having this blind pointed view on football for not seeing Blind's footballing capability whilst they go on talking about Lindelof who is half a defender and only a quarter of a ball playing one.
Long winded way of saying he’s been poor in the second half.
That was the key. This team already have a bunch of knee jerk tacklers. It needs somebody who have pace to sweep, not pushing up.
De Ligt to be nugmegged is just football. Happened to other great CB. To be prone to something is a tactical point that affects a whole approach. And with our current lot problem, Blind own weakness doesn't help the situation here.
It's good for him to be with Ajax. I don't see the the point of argument from both sides.
. Your talking like he is the only one - talking about this is the reason he had to leave United.
Utter rubbish. The whole of Ajax stopped playing the right way.
Him and De Ligt haven’t dealt with Llorente all game.
It’s Daley Blind thread not Ajax defence thread, didn’t cover himself in glory for final goal either.
It’s fine bemoaning him being sold and saying he should be playing for Barca when all going well. But that’s the other side to his game and why he’s not at Barca, at times he moves like his legs are tied together and weighed down.
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Lost all aerial duels second half
Nostalgia FC is bad enough when we talk about Fergie era but let’s leave this guy go. Not really good enough for a physical league Ajax suits him. Glad for him he made the move as they are in better shape than us all the same
Nostalgia FC is bad enough when we talk about Fergie era but let’s leave this guy go. Not really good enough for a physical league Ajax suits him. Glad for him he made the move as they are in better shape than us all the same
He was so versatile, he could have helped us in many different ways this season, potentially giving us enough good shifts (& keeping someone else on the bench) to make fourth at a minimum.
I also felt we let O’Shea go too early, a similarly versatile player. I am certain if we had kept O’Shea (&, to a lesser extent, Brown) for the 11/12 season, we would have won the league.