Blind Using Brain & Brawn

Daley Blind is confident in his new-found physical strength but believes that a player's way of thinking is still crucial in the pursuit of success.

A man who's deftly adapted to different positions for Manchester United, Blind is an epitome of intelligent football. And while he's talked in previous interviews about working on his power, he maintains that isn't the most important aspect of the game at its highest echelons.

"I think my strength is helping when I am defending and also playing in midfield but still I reckon it is more about a way of thinking," Blind told MUTV.

"If you’re standing in the right position, then you don’t have to be the strongest player."

Tuesday's match against CSKA Moscow naturally prompted Blind to reflect on the previous meeting with the Russian club and, while that was the first of four successive draws for the Reds, the Dutchman felt the 1-1 scoreline was by no means a negative outcome in the context of the Champions League.

"If you think it is going to be difficult to get all three points, you can be happy in an away game with one," he said. "The main thing is that you don’t go away with zero points.

"Sometimes you have to make sure that, in an away game, you get the draw. Read the game and see if it’s possible to win or not and, if not, you play for the draw."

Another reason for accepting the away point was the technical ability of CSKA Moscow, something which Blind recognised when playing against them at Arena Khimki.

“They are a really organised team, they are really compact and they have some speed up front and on the counter-attack. I think we defended quite well over there. We didn’t create a lot of chances for ourselves but we were dangerous enough."

Blind acknowledges that Group B is one of the closest in the current Champions League campaign; leaders Wolfsburg are only three points ahead of bottom club PSV Eindhoven, conquerors of United on matchday one.

“It’s a tough group. Wolfsburg are also a great team and we had some difficulties against PSV but we still have two home games to go so we have it in our own hands.

“You have a points target in your mind but I’m not really thinking about that. You just have to try to win your games and get as many points as possible, to win the group. I’m a player who lives game by game and doesn’t look too far forward.”