Would Daley Blind be a Good Signing for Manchester United?

Ever since his displays in the world cup, Daley Blind has been linked with a move to Old Trafford before the closure of the transfer window. Recently, Blind has fueled the speculation surrounding him by publicly coming out and saying that it would be hard to reject a move to a team like Manchester United. With Louis van Gaal having already worked with the versatile outfielder during his tenure in charge of the Dutch national side, a move for Blind seems likely. But will Blind be able to solve some of United's biggest problems?

Daley Blind in action for Netherlands during the World Cup.

First off, here is some background information on Blind. Daley Blind is currently 24 years of age, and plays for the Eredivsie champions Ajax. Being a product of Ajax's youth system, Blind has never left the club, apart form a single loan spell at FC Groningen in 2010. Since breaking into the side in 2008, Blind has gone onto play 100 matches for Ajax, scoring 3 goals.

Blind's impressive performances for his club have cemented his place in the Dutch national side as a left-back, or as a left-wing back under Louis van Gaal, ahead of highly rated Jetro Willems.

Blind has been very impressive over the past few years for Ajax playing at left-back, a position which many think to be his preferred. However, it is not his accomplished performances from the left-back position which have caught the eye of everyone around of the world. Blind is a very versatile player, able to play in two other positions aside from left-back, being centre-back and defensive midfield.

Recently, Blind reinvented himself under Frank de Boer, who saw Blind as a defensive midfielder rather than a left-back or a centre-back. Although it may have seemed a gamble at the time, de Boer played Blind in the 'number 6' role, despite many others having doubts regarding whether or not Blind would be able to fully establish himself as a defensive midfield. Little did he know it, Blind excelled in the number 6 role. Now, the entire Ajax side revolves around Blind, who plays in the number 6 role regularly unless he has to fill in at left-back or centre-back due to the limited available choices in those positions.

Despite many thinking he is a natural left-back primarily due to the fact that he played in the left-wing back position under Louis van Gaal at the world cup, Blind has reinstated himself and fully established himself as a defensive midfielder, where he even sometimes looks more comfortable on the pitch.

In the Eredivisie, Blind is rated very highly due to his intelligence and ability. Blind dictates the tempo of Ajax's game, and defensively does a solid job for them too. Primarily, his job for Ajax has been to shut down the opposition's playmaker by man marking him, not giving him any space and hence limiting the creativity of the opposition in the final third. Offensively, Blind can play fantastic through balls for Ajax's strikers to latch onto. Blind's vision is quite understated, as he can spot spaces on the field which other players in the Eredivise are not capable of.

Blind's playing style earned him a comparison to Germany and Bayern Munich's captain, Phillip Lahm, and his current manager called him the 'Dutch Phillip Lahm'. Although it may seem like an insane comparison, Blind and Lahm do share very similar playing styles, and both are full-backs turned defensive midfielders. Though Blind has a long way to go if he wants to come anywhere near Lahm's career, Blind definitely has the potential to do so, but he will need to also be surrounded by better players like Lahm, something which will happen if he joins Manchester United.

If he chooses to leave Ajax and join Manchester United, Blind will undoubtedly face a couple of challenges. Firstly, he will have to live up to his hype. Lots of United fans seem to only remember his cross for Robin van Persie's famous header against Spain in the world cup, and with a price tag of 17 million, Blind will have some seriously high expectations to fulfill. Most fans will demand to see crosses like that every week, something which would have been a big ask for even David Beckham. Secondly, I personally think that Blind might suffer from the physicality of the Premier League. He is not exactly a Nigel de Jong if you didn't know, he will probably be overwhelmed by how physical the English sides, especially teams like West Ham or Stoke, are compared to the Dutch clubs.

Although in possession Daley Blind is fantastic, his problems in the Premier League will come off the ball. Defensive midfielders need to be strong in order to survive the Premier League, and for that reason alone I think Blind will need to spend some more time in the gym. However, we have seen players with small, 'fragile' builds excel in the Premier League, players like Juan Mata or David Silva. Despite this, a 'weak' or 'physically undominating' defensive midfielder is quite unheard of.

With his great versatility and talent, for a relatively cheap price compared to other United signings, Blind would make a great acquisition for Manchester United. He, alone, will help cover 3 positions which United seem fairly short-stocked at, and thus would make a potentially great signing. If Blind keeps his head and delivers consistently good performances like he did for Ajax, the fans will undoubtedly love him and he'll be an instant hit at Old Trafford.

Written by Mayank Tiwary. Follow on Twitter .