Ailed Argentina take on solid Dutch

After winning three finals on the trot to keep themselves alive in the tournament, Argentina now take on Netherlands, who are yet to be beaten in the tournament.

The clash will be a rematch of the 2014 World Cup semi-final between the sides, where the Albiceleste triumphed in the shootout to reach the final.

The story of the World Cup has been very different for the sides as Netherlands have not lost any of their four matches so far. They were in some trouble in the group stages against Ecuador and Senegal but managed to stay unscathed, and after their talisman Memphis Depay returned, they brushed aside USA in the Round of 16 to reach the last eight.

On the flip side, Argentina wobbled early in the tournament as they were shocked by Saudi Arabia. However, their skipper Lionel Messi bailed them out against Mexico before a team performance allowing them to qualify as the group Champions.

In the round of 16, they were dominant once again following another brilliant Messi goal and Julian Alvarez’s second of the tournament, but the cat was among the pigeons once they conceded. It was only Lisandro Martinez’s brilliant tackle and goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez’s brilliant save in the dying minutes that helped them scrape past Australia in the last 16.

While Messi arguably produced his best performance of the tournament so far, it’s unlikely that he will be enough to send them through against a quality side in Netherlands.

Especially because the Dutch will have their preparations aiming to defend him the most, meaning Argentina would need to find a way past their European opposition even if their mercurial skipper fails.

Ahead of the clash, Argentina had some concerns that midfielder Rodrigo de Paul, a key cog in Lionel Scaloni’s machine, could be out of the tie. He is yet to be fully discharged, and the situation is similar with Angel Di Maria, meaning Scaloni will have to wait until the last second to make his XI.

Louis Van Gaal, the Dutch manager, on the other hand, will have the full squad at his disposal, with their XI likely remaining the same as their match against USA.

In the match at the Lusail Stadium, Argentina are likely to have more fans in attendance according to reports, but Van Gaal is not worried about it.

“My players are professional enough to cope with this. Obviously, it ain’t easy when they have 40.000 fans and we have 1.400,” he said.