The Rise Of Daley Blind

Daley Blind made a milestone appearance - his 100th for Manchester United - this week, appropriately against a club from his native Netherlands. Here, in this feature first published in the match programme United Review, we chart his rise with the help of Dutch legend Frank de Boer and journalist Elko Born...

From the young lad copping flak from Ajax fans to a classy but streetwise fixture in Jose Mourinho’s United defence, our no.17 has come a long way in a short space of time.

Six months after leaving Ajax for United, in January 2015, Daley Blind returned to the Amsterdam Arena ahead of De Klassieker – the big Dutch derby between his former side and fierce rivals Feyenoord.

The Reds star, joined on the pitch by another departed Ajax hero, Tottenham's Toby Alderweireld, was met with a homecoming of fireworks and banners expressing gratitude. The pair undertook a lap of honour and addressed the crowd before leaving the field to a huge ovation.

Having been booed by some of those same supporters less than three years earlier, the scenes bore a surreal tinge. But then, for one so used to confounding expectations himself, perhaps Daley wouldn’t have been surprised. Having overcome the anticipation of being Danny Blind’s son and the wrath of misguided Ajax fans in Holland, as well as a variety of positional shifts, managerial change and assimilative challenges in Manchester, our no.17 is well aware that expectations mean little.

The Netherlands defender, who matched his father’s haul of 42 Dutch caps during this month’s international break, has established himself as a key member of Mourinho’s backline, despite being brought to Old Trafford by Louis van Gaal as a defensive midfielder. Those who thought he would struggle with the pace and power of the Premier League fell into the same trap as those who doubted he could make the grade at Ajax, not reckoning on the mental strength and sharp intellect which would give Daley a key advantage over most of his opponents.

AJAX UPBRINGING
Former Ajax manager Frank de Boer, the man widely credited with launching Daley’s career, having led him along the brighter path at a career crossroads, believes his upbringing at the Dutch giants has stood him in good stead. “When I look at him now, I can see the real characteristics of an Ajax player in him. He’s a typical Ajax player,” de Boer tells United Review. “He has great intelligence, he’s good with the ball, good technically, good vision, always looking to play it forward and always trying to look for solutions.

“The boys at Ajax are made to understand they have to give everything in every training session. Technical things are also important, that they try to dominate the ball. They mustn’t be afraid to make mistakes, they have to learn from mistakes and there is the pressure that they always have to win. You see a lot of players who join from another club and winning is important to them, but when they lose nobody complains, whereas at Ajax a draw feels like a loss.”

De Boer was coaching Ajax’s Under-13s and spending time with the club’s other age groups when he first crossed paths with a 17-year-old Blind, who had already been skipped ahead to play with the Amsterdammers’ Under-19s team. 

“You could tell even then he was one of the biggest talents in his age group, especially with his vision,” says the former Dutch international, who amassed 112 international caps during his own stellar career as a defender.

“Daley was a defender always looking for a solution. He was very smart. Physically he was maybe not that strong or that fast, but he always had a good position and, whenever an opponent had the ball at his feet, he always managed to get a toe to the ball.”

RISING TO THE CHALLENGE
Despite his natural talent and the well-established syllabus for Ajax youngsters, however, Blind endured a tough time when he stepped up to senior level. 

“When Blind first broke into the Ajax team, the consensus among fans and pundits alike was that it was going to be difficult for him to succeed in Amsterdam,” explains Dutch journalist Elko Born.

“He was loaned out to FC Groningen in Holland and, quite honestly, some fans did not expect him to return to Ajax. Later, when he had returned, a lot of people were still critical of him. Here, we can pinpoint another reason for the respect he gathers these days. The way he was able to handle this tough and challenging time proves how good he is at growing and keeping his cool under pressure.”

De Boer, who stepped up to replace Martin Jol as Ajax manager midway through the 2010/11 season, persevered with Blind as a squad member at a time when Ajax’s vociferous support were regularly barracking the youngster. He also gave him advice which would lay the foundations for the career to follow.

“I gave him the trust,” says de Boer. “I saw his quality, but I thought he still had to understand what it really means to be a top player with a top-spot mentality. I said to him that he had to invest more in himself, especially in his body, and he had to go to the gym more. It’s not only about when you have the ball because when you have duels you want to be strong. 

“Now, if you compare him to where he was three or four years ago, it’s a whole different person. Of course he’s older, but now he’s really matured in every part of himself: mentality, physically, tactically, everything.”

Daley’s breakthrough at Ajax came during 2012/13. Having started the campaign as the supporters’ fall guy, he ended it as their player of the season after making the left-back slot his own. He also picked up his third Eredivisie title, but his first as a mainstay. The following season, which would be Blind’s last in Amsterdam, also ended with the title, but this time it came after a successful positional switch. 

“He did well at left full-back, but when I used him as a controlling midfielder he did very well,” says de Boer. “That position is maybe the most difficult. You have to defend but also you’re the first man who receives the ball from behind, and he did very well with that. It was a big moment for me also because he was a key player for my team. I wasn’t satisfied with the player who played in that position at the time, but when I put Daley in that position everything fell together in that moment.”

FROM EREDIVISIE TO ENGLAND
Later in 2014, United’s appointment of Louis van Gaal, who knew Blind well from managing the Netherlands’ national team and also retained a close relationship with de Boer, meant that a move to Old Trafford was soon inevitable. Once again, questions were raised over the then 24-year-old’s ability to adapt to life in a league where the currencies of pace and power were stronger than in the Eredivisie.

“Many young, talented players have faltered on the road from promise to achievement, and followers of the Dutch league have seen countless players fail abroad after outgrowing the Eredivisie,” explains Born.

“Daley, however, has been an important player for Manchester United for more than two years now. To make the transition from the loan list at Ajax to United’s first team is remarkable. What’s more, he has the intelligence to play in multiple positions, wherever the manager needs him. We have seen him at left-back, centre-back and defensive midfield. Never in my life have I seen a player so mentally strong, so willing and able to grow and adapt.”

Though Blind became a fixture under van Gaal, making more appearances than any other United player last season, the summer appointment of Mourinho left him needing to prove himself once again. While the arrival of Eric Bailly did bolster the Reds’ defensive ranks, Blind has remained firmly in the new manager’s plans, missing just five games this season and drawing praise for his typically composed displays at either left-back or centre-back.

“Mourinho sees what Daley brings to the team,” says de Boer. “That’s even more satisfying for me and for Daley, the fact that he can think, ‘Okay, maybe Mourinho has a different view about football, different to de Boer or van Gaal, but I can also be important for this coach, too.’ He’s so intelligent that he has already played three positions at United and he has shown everybody that he can manage very well, whatever the expectations are.”

By the time he played his milestone 100th match for the Reds on Thursday night, in which he once again looked assured in contributing to a much-needed clean sheet, Blind had already done more than enough to earn the faith of supporters at United, just as he did in Amsterdam.