The meeting between the Argentines and the Dutch, sixth in the history of the World Cups, is presented as a rematch of the semifinal in Brazil 2014 when Alejandro Sabella’s team won on penalties against the team led, as at present, by the prestigious coach Louis Van Gaal.
At 71 years old, Van Gaal is the oldest coach in Qatar 2022 and exhibits validity reflected in statistics. His third cycle in the “Oranje” began in September 2021 due to the lack of results of his predecessor Frank De Boer and gave birth to an unbeaten streak of 14 wins and 5 draws.
The current squad, without the stars of other times but with footballers of proven hierarchy, stands faithfully behind a leader who wanted to remain in the national team despite fighting cancer.
The Netherlands, the eighth best team in the world according to the latest FIFA ranking, won Group A undefeated, which they shared with Qatar, Ecuador and Senegal, and subsequently eliminated the United States in the round of 16.
His style of play is far from the traditional school of Johan Cruyff, a characteristic naturally accepted by the coach. “I changed my way of thinking about football,” said the manager of the aesthetic Ajax champion of Europe and the Intercontinental Cup in the ’90s.
Netherlands national team highlights
Van Gaal did not want to reveal the cards to face Argentina but hinted that he has studied the current champion of America very well, who went from less to more in this World Cup after debuting with an unexpected defeat against Saudi Arabia.
The highlights of the Argentina team
His Argentine colleague, Lionel Scaloni, standing at the other end of the age pyramid, since he is the youngest coach in the World Cup at 44 years old, also fueled that game of hide and seek without giving clues about the tactical drawing, the strategy or the formation that will use in the return to Lusail, scene of the first two games of the “Albiceleste”.
Speculation about the names includes the wingers, midfielder Rodrigo De Paul and striker Ángel Di María.
“We never play 4-3-3 because we don’t have a left winger,” Scaloni clarified today, who in the part of training that the press did not observe also tried with a 3/5 line in defense, with Lisandro Martínez entering as a center back on the left and Not playing from the start Di María, “the only winger the team has”, the Pujato coach completed his description.
And just today Di María was on Van Gaal’s lips for a personal dispute that they have had since they met at Manchester United. “Fideo” went so far as to affirm that the Dutchman was “the worst coach” of his career.
“I didn’t like it, but he is one of the few who has said it,” minimized the coach with a past in other greats in Europe such as Barcelona and Bayern Munich.
Scaloni assumed the complexity of the confrontation in the preview but avoided projecting how the game could be considered, aware that “all rivals play differently” when facing his team.
Argentina reached the quarterfinals led by its captain Lionel Messi (3 goals), a respected figure but far from being feared in the orange squad, which has one of the best defenders in the world as captain, Virgil Van Dijk (Liverpool). .
“Messi does not participate without possession,” said Van Gaal, perhaps as an indication of what he can look for in this sixth World Cup matchup.
In the previous five, Argentina could never beat them in the 90 minutes of regulation but celebrated the two most important: the ’78 World Cup final (3-1 in added time) and the semifinals of Brazil 2014 (4-2 on penalties).
The Netherlands prevailed in the other direct elimination match (2-1, quarterfinals in France ’98) and thrashed 4-0 in the second round of Germany ’74. The only tie (0-0) occurred in the group stage of Germany 2006 when both were already classified.
This Friday’s game will be defined with a 30-minute overtime and eventually kicks from the penalty mark if it remains tied in regular time.
When will Argentina vs the Netherlands play?
The match will be played from 4:00 p.m. at the Lusail Stadium, with capacity for 88,966 spectators, under the refereeing of the Spanish Antonio Mateu Lahoz, who will be accompanied by his compatriots Pau Cebrian (assistant 1), Roberto Díaz (assistant 2) and Alejandro Hernández (VAR ).
Where to watch Argentina vs Netherlands
The duel between South Americans and Europeans will be televised on Public Television and the cable channels TyC Sports and DirecTV Sports.
Argentina vs Netherlands: probable formations
Argentina
- Emiliano Martinez
- Gonzalo Montiel (or Nahuel Molina)
- Christian Romero
- Nicholas Otamendi
- Lisandro Martínez (or Ángel Di María)
- Nicolás Tagliafico (or Marcos Acuña)
- Rodrigo De Paul (or Leandro Paredes)
- Enzo Fernandez
- Alexis MacAllister
- Lionel Messi
- Ángel Di María (or Lisandro Martínez)
- Julian Alvarez
- DT: Lionel Scaloni.
Netherlands
- Andries Noppert
- Jurrien Timber
- Virgil van Dijk
- Nathan Ake; Denzel Dumfries
- marten de roon
- Frenkie de Jong
- Daley Blind
- Davy Klaassen
- Cody Gakpo
- Memphis DePay
- DT: Louis Van Gaal.
Source: Ambito
I am Pierce Boyd, a driven and ambitious professional working in the news industry. I have been writing for 24 Hours Worlds for over five years, specializing in sports section coverage. During my tenure at the publication, I have built an impressive portfolio of articles that has earned me a reputation as an experienced journalist and content creator.
