EXCLUSIVE: Daley Blind praises new Ajax boss Michel: 'Learned a lot from him'

[p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/blind-daley/U5mPqlh6/"]Daley Blind[/a], 36, joined [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/girona/nNNpcUSL/"]Girona[/a] from Bayern Munich in the summer of 2023, two years after Míchel joined the Catalan side. [/p][p]In an exclusive interview with[i] [/i][b][i]Flashscore[/i]'s[/b] [b]Daniel Sobis[/b], Blind spoke about Míchel, who was Blind's manager for three seasons.[/p][p][b]"I really like to work with him. I think you grow a relationship over three years," [/b]Blind said.[/p][p][b]"I like that you can be honest with him and have a good discussion about football. He knows a lot about football. I had many coaches, I've learned a lot and am still learning a lot from him, how he sees football, how he sees the tactics, and how we compete against different opponents, different play styles. It's really interesting, and I can really learn something from that."[/b][/p][image alt="Girona manager Míchel embraces Daley Blind after their LaLiga win over Villarreal" id="485f5d4e-abaf-47ba-a8db-2414ffae9452" credit-line="Photo by ALEX CAPARROS / GETTY IMAGES EUROPE / GETTY IMAGES VIA AFP" guid="3f34a345-b0e0-4a2f-b243-8f3ace01f3d5" original-width="2984" original-height="1989" /][p]Blind and Míchel qualified for the UEFA Champions League in the former's first season with the club. It was the first time Girona had qualified for Europe's top competition. The Dutch defender praised Míchel's style of play that led to the club's historic success.[/p][p][b]"I like his philosophy of playing. Building up from the back, with many positional changes and attractive football. From the moment I got there, he really had this play style in his mind, and we tried to bring that on the pitch. I think the first year was amazing, with the team we had and the Champions League qualification."[/b][/p][p]Girona struggled following the 2023-24 season, finishing 16th in the year of their Champions League debut and even failing to avoid relegation in 2025-26.[/p][p][b]"In the second year, we had a lot of difficulties, but this year, even with the difficulties he has had, he has also been really honest with himself and the team," [/b]Blind said about Míchel, who left the club in June to join Dutch side [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/ajax/8UOvIwnb/"]Ajax[/a], the club Blind has played 333 games for in his career.[/p][embed guid="63aabeb9-d730-45f9-8634-4b80dbb2bbf2" url="https://x.com/AFCAjax/status/2061866697674420388?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]To conclude his praise of Míchel, Blind discussed the human side of the "respected" Spaniard's work.[/p][p][b]"I think it's also a quality to be vulnerable with everyone and to see it as a collective. I think that's why the players respect him a lot, and he respects them a lot too. I think this is a good understanding for each other to move forward. And I think that's why we improved a lot this season. As I said, I think his look at football is really interesting, and I like it."[/b][/p]