Mascherano has not had too many issues over his lack of height or the fact that he had been used to playing elsewhere. Blind will be our Mascherano. Love this player.
Mascherano is stronger than Blind, and faster, too. And teams are scared of pushing too high against Barca for fear of being overwhelmed at the back with that famed front line. And there is also the fact that the Premier League is more physical than the La Liga.
When teams will play big strong pacey attackers upfront or press our midfield and defence and force mistakes or start putting in crosses for multiple target men, Blind will be exposed. He doesn't belong in central defence in this league for a club like United.
His pace worries me more than his height, but with the way we play we shouldn't be too worried about being caught on the break too often. It could be dangerous if we have to chase a game though, for example in a cup match.
I'm pleasantly surprised so far though.
We rely too much on our full backs to keep opposition wingers quiet and the long balls over defence minimal. Blind's shortcomings are being covered by the form of the other three in defence. I agree with the fact that if our full backs are on the offensive chasing a game and get caught, Blind's lack of pace and height will be a grave issue.
He's fine defensively as long as he gets some protection from the midfield and can focus on his positioning to cut out passes. When teams run through our midfield or throw in cross after cross this could become a problem. Our possession based approach helps prevent this but I worry that sooner or later it'll cost us.
His passing from the back is fantastic though. He's ultra composed on the ball and always seems to find a passing solution even if strikers are pressing. He never seems to launch a hopeless ball forward (something Smalling is still guilty of). He's key to our possession game.
It can't be denied that he
does add the extra composure and passing efficiency to the defence. 98.4%, as imperi pointed out. As long as there are other people covering up for his weaknesses, he is doing what he does best - pass the ball around intelligently, make well timed tackles and position himself well. But I'm afraid he's just a tactical trap away from a disaster. The top PL teams will expose him. I'd rather we'd signed a proper ball playing CB in his place.