Today, the second national teams will be revealed in the 2014 World Cup, which will play in the tournament final. The new generation of the Dutch national team will clash against the Argentine constellation. Netherlands - Argentina Stadium: "Arena Corinthians" (Sao Paulo) Referee: Cuneytas Cakiras (Turkey) Date and time: 2014-07-09, 23:00 Argentina Argentina last triumphed in the World Cup 28 years ago. Lionel Messi, hailed as the best footballer of all time, is close to glory, but faces a serious challenge in the semi-finals. Entering the semi-finals was not easy for the Argentines, as they were only able to defeat the promising European team Belgium by a minimal margin. The match was won with a decisive goal by Gonzalo Higuain, silencing skeptics. In the group stage, the Argentine players did not have much trouble, as their opponents were not impressive. With efforts made, they defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina with a score of 2-1, narrowly won over Iran, and secured 9 points against Nigeria in a high-scoring match. Before the quarter-final match against Belgium, the Argentines had to face another European team, Switzerland. In the 118th minute of extra time, Angel Di Maria scored a decisive goal after a precise pass from Lionel Messi, securing their place in the next stage. Argentina's national team is still unbeaten in this World Cup, but experts have noticed flaws in their game. According to them, the weak link is defense, while the strong point is offense, but not very attractive from a gameplay perspective. Coach Alejandro Sabella's team has not been able to avoid problems leading up to the match against the Dutch. They will definitely miss key player A. Di Maria, who suffered an injury in the match against Belgium. Predicted starting lineup: Romero Zabaleta, Demichelis, Garay, Rojo Biglia, Mascherano, Gago Messi, Higuain, Aguero Netherlands The Dutch national team has never held the World Cup trophy, although they have competed in the final for the title three times. The Dutch are not the main contenders, but in 2010 they lost to Spain in the final after extra time without being the favorite. In the group stage, the Dutch secured all possible points without much difficulty, playing in the "Group of Death" with Spain, Chile, and Australia. In the first match, the reigning champions Spain were surprisingly defeated, Australia was beaten 3-2, and Chile secured the first place in the group. In the quarter-finals, Louis van Gaal's team struggled against Mexico, falling behind 1-0 until the 88th minute. However, Wesley Sneijder and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar's accurate strikes in the end of the match secured their place in the quarterfinals. In the last match, the Dutch faced Costa Rica in the knockout stage. The Dutch players, considered clear favorites, defeated Costa Rica only in a penalty shootout. With the efforts of goalkeeper Tim Krul, the Dutch advanced to the semi-finals. Coach A. Sabella's opponent, L. van Gaal, also encountered problems in defense. Nigel De Jong, who did not play for the Netherlands from the quarter-final match, suffered an injury that will most likely rule him out of the World Cup. Predicted starting lineup: Cillessen Vlaar, De Vrij, Martins Indi Kuyt, Wijnaldum, Sneijder, Blind Robben, Van Persie, Depay Head-to-head history The Dutch and Argentine national teams have met four times in the World Cup. The head-to-head history favors the Dutch. The first match between the two teams in the World Cup took place in 1974 in West Germany, where the Dutch humiliated the Argentines with a score of 4-0. However, in the next World Cup, the Argentines paid back with a crushing victory. The teams faced each other in the final of the World Championships, and after extra time, the South American team defeated the Dutch with a score of 3-1, becoming world champions. The third match was played in 1998 in France, where the Dutch players eliminated Argentina from the tournament in the quarter-finals with a score of 2-1. The last match took place in 2006, when Argentina and the Netherlands drew without goals in the group stage. The goal scoring ratio also favors the Dutch. In all four matches, the teams scored a total of 11 goals, with the current World Cup runners-up netting seven of them. Interesting facts: - Argentina reached the World Cup semi-finals after a 24-year hiatus. They last played in this stage in 1990, when they finished as runners-up to West Germany in the final. - Argentina has not won any of their five World Cup matches against opponents by a margin of two goals. All their victories were achieved by a one-goal difference. - The Netherlands national team has only lost twice to South American teams in 12 World Cup matches. - The Dutch scored 10 of their 12 goals after the first half. - The Dutch players made 692 passes in the match against Costa Rica, setting a record for the most passes completed in a single World Cup match. - This is the first time that both Argentina and their arch-rivals, Brazil, have reached the semi-finals in the same World Cup.
Aivaras Katutis
