Blind rose through the youth ranks at Ajax, becoming a regular after a loan toGroningen, and won four consecutiveEredivisie titles with the club. In September 2014, he transferred to Manchester United for £13.8 million, where he was part of the team that won four trophies including theFA Cup,EFL Cup andUEFA Europa League. In the summer of 2018, Blind returned to Ajax, where he won his fifth Eredivisie title and a first-everKNVB Cup in his first season back at the club. He won two more Eredivisie titles before moving toBayern Munich, where he won theBundesliga during a six-month spell. Blind signed for Spanish club Girona in 2023.
Blind began his career in the youth academy of his hometown club,Ajax; the same club where his fatherDanny made his name as a professional.[4] Blind is a product of theAjax youth system and, while officially still a B-junior, he became a mainstay in the A-juniors during the 2007–08 season[5] before earning promotion to the Ajax first-team for the 2008–09 season.[6] He showed good promise as a youngster and was made captain ofJong Ajax in 2007.[7] He signed his first professional contract at the age of 17, tying him to the club until 1 July 2010.[5]
On 7 December 2008, Blind made his debut in the Ajax first-team in the away match againstFC Volendam. Blind made an immediate impact when he forced a corner kick through a Volendam defender, from whichJan Vertonghen scored the winning goal for Ajax.[6] On 19 December 2008, he signed a contract extension keeping him with Ajax until 30 June 2013.[8][9]
On 5 January 2010, he joinedGroningen on loan for the remainder of the 2009–10 season, during the winter transfer window.[10] At Groningen, Blind was mainly used as aright back.[11] He was almost sold to Groningen for €1.5 million by Ajax on a permanent basis but the move did not materialize.[7]
The following two seasons saw Blind contribute to twoEredivisie national championships with Ajax, for the2010–11 season, and the2011–12 season, the first of which would be Ajax's 30th championship title. However, Blind's performances when given the chance were unconvincing and he was even booed off the field in an Eredivisie game.[7] Under newly appointed managerFrank de Boer, Blind would be given more and more trust and playing time, earning him the place as the first-choiceleft back with a permanent starting position during the 2012–13 season.[12]
On 23 April 2013, it was announced byMarc Overmars that Ajax and Blind had reached an agreement to extend his contract for three years, binding him to the club until the summer of 2016.[13] On 5 May, Blind contributed to Ajax's third DutchEredivisie title in a row, marking the club's 32nd national title, helping to defeatWillem II 5–0 at home, and securing the top position on the table just one match day from season's end. Later that day it was announced that Blind had been declared AFC Ajax Player of the Year for the2012–13 season, after playing an outstanding fifth year for Ajax, from the starting left-back position.[citation needed]
During the2013–14 season, De Boer moved Blind back to his natural defensive central midfielder position and was namedDutch Footballer of the Year as Ajax won a fourth consecutive league title.[14]
On 30 August 2014,Manchester United reached an agreement to sign Blind, subject to a medical and agreement of personal terms.[15] The transfer was completed on 1 September 2014, for a fee of £13.8 million.[16]
Blind playing for Manchester United in 2017
Blind made his debut 13 days after his signing, playing the full 90 minutes as United beatQueens Park Rangers 4–0 atOld Trafford for their first victory of the season.[17] His first goal for the club came on 20 October, a 20-yard strike that earned United a 2–2 draw atWest Bromwich Albion.[18]
On 16 November, Blind sustained a knee ligament injury in theNetherlands'UEFA Euro 2016qualifier againstLatvia[19] which kept him out of the Manchester United team for the remainder of 2014. On 11 January 2015, Blind returned to the United team, starting in defence in a 1–0 loss toSouthampton at Old Trafford.[20] On 8 February, he scored an injury-time equaliser for United in a 1–1 draw againstWest Ham.[21]
Although throughout the previous season Blind was used as a defensive midfielder or left back, Blind started the season as a centre back, where he played for the majority of the season. On 12 September 2015, he scored his first goal of the season in a 3–1 win againstLiverpool atOld Trafford, also being named man of the match for his performance.[22]
He began the2016–17 Premier League season as first-choice centre back alongsideChris Smalling, however, lost his place in the team following a return to form ofPhil Jones andMarcos Rojo. He worked his way back to the first-team, but featured mostly at left back, replacing first-choice left-backLuke Shaw. He scored his first goal of the season against Sunderland on Boxing Day, charging into the box to connect with a pass fromZlatan Ibrahimović and finishing low into the bottom corner.[23] He started the Europa League final against his former team Ajax, which Manchester United won 2–0.[24]
On 17 July 2018, both Manchester United and Ajax announced they had agreed a transfer for Blind to return to Ajax for a four-year deal and a fee of €16 million with conditional add-ons.[25][26] On 16 December 2018, Blind scored his first seniorhat-trick, in an 8–0 league win overDe Graafschap at home, whilst playing as a centre back.[27]
In August 2020, Blind collapsed during a pre-season friendly and was due for medical exams before returning to training.[28]
On 27 December 2022, Blind and Ajax mutually terminated his contract and Blind left the club as a free agent.[29]
On 7 July 2023, Blind joinedLa Liga clubGirona on a two-year contract.[31] On 12 August 2023, he made his debut for the club in a 1–1 draw againstReal Sociedad. On 3 January 2024, Blind scored his first goal for Girona in a 4–3 win overAtlético Madrid. It was the club's first ever league victory over Atlético and the result ensured that Girona would be equal on points withReal Madrid at the top of the table at the halfway point of theLa Liga season.[32] On 15 May 2024, Girona announced that Blind had signed received a one-year contract extension, keeping him with the club until June 2026.[33][34]
Blind was called up to theNetherlands under-17 squad for2007 European Championships. After missing out the opening match through suspension, he scored a brace against Iceland in the second match[35] but picked up an ankle injury in that match that ended his participation in the remainder of the tournament.[36] He was called up to theunder-21 team for several2011 European Championship qualifiers but did not leave the bench. On 13 October, he made his first appearance in the campaign, coming on as a substitute for Ajax teammateSiem de Jong in a 4–0 win away at Poland.
Having had previous call-ups, Blind made his debut for theNetherlands senior team on 6 February 2013, in the starting left-back position, againstItaly in afriendly at theAmsterdam Arena. The match ended in a 1–1 draw, with Blind playing the full 90 minutes.[37] In June 2014, he was selected in the Netherlands squad for the2014 FIFA World Cup. He was a starter at left wing back for the team's opening match againstSpain, assisting goals forRobin van Persie andArjen Robben, as theOranje won 5–1.[38] He scored his first goal for the Netherlands in a 3–0 defeat ofBrazil in the third-place play-off.[39] He would later score in a friendly againstMexico later that year.[40] After the team had failed to qualify for bothUEFA Euro 2016 and the2018 FIFA World Cup, Blind was included in the Netherlands squad for the2019 UEFA Nations League Finals, where he started at left back in both the semi-final win againstEngland and final loss toPortugal.[41][42][43] He was selected for teams played in theUEFA Euro 2020[44] and2022 FIFA World Cup.[45] He scored his first goal for the Netherlands in eight years in the latter competition's round of 16 win over theUnited States.[46] On 24 March 2023, Blind played his 100th match for the Netherlands in a 4–0 away defeat againstFrance during theUEFA Euro 2024 qualifying.[47][48]
After initially being cut from the Netherlands' squad for the2023 UEFA Nations League Finals, Blind was recalled as a replacement for the injuredMatthijs de Ligt on 12 June 2023.[49] He was an unused substitute against bothCroatia in the semi-final andItaly in the third place play-off.[50][51]
On 29 May 2024, Blind was named in the Netherlands' squad forUEFA Euro 2024.[52] On 14 August of that year, it was announced that Blind retired from international football with 108 caps.[53]
He is the son of former Ajax defender and former Netherlands national team managerDanny Blind.[5] His wife gave birth to their son in March 2019.[citation needed]
^"Frank de Boer maakt EK-selectie bekend" [Frank de Boer announces European Championship squad] (in Dutch). Royal Dutch Football Association. 26 May 2021. Retrieved26 May 2021.
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