Welcome to the preview of the 2nd World Cup Semi Final with the Netherlands taking on Argentina in what should be a great contest. The last time these two met was at the 2006 World Cup where it ended in scoreless draw in their final game in the group stages, but with the stakes much higher here I think it’s safe to assume we could be in for a much more exciting contest.
**Odds from betfair as at 8th July
Netherlands ($3.4) versus Argentina ($2.46), Draw ($3.25)
The Dutch take on Argentina here in this second Semi Final and for me I’m expecting a pretty open game. Apart from their scoreless draw with Costa Rica, which went to penalties, the Netherlands have been for the most part free scoring with 12 goals from their 5 games so far. Perhaps without luck and some great goal keeping, they would have scored against Costa Rica but 12 shots on target wasn’t enough in the end. If they can bring that attacking form here they’ll have every chance of breaking through what has been a somewhat surprisingly tight Argentinian defence. Argentina have conceded just the 4 goals in this World Cup whilst also keeping 3 clean sheets which is more than I would have expected at the start of the tournament. To their credit though they have been excellent defensively but they will need to be at their best against this Dutch side. Without taking too much away from Argentina, they haven’t taken real control of a game in terms of scoreboard pressure with all of their games ending in 1 goal wins, one of which also came in extra time. It might be a factor that their opposition has played more defensively against them but I would have expected a little more from them in the attack department. Regardless though, it doesn’t detract from their chances here in progressing with this one likely to go down to the wire anyway against a quality opponent.
Both sides have some personnel concerns with Argentina without Di Maria due to an injury picked up against Belgium. A positive for Argentina though is Aguero could return from injury though I’m not sure how much impact he’ll have coming off an injury. For the Dutch they’ll again be without De Jong and possibly Fer through injury which will again force Van Gaal to play around with his formation. Regardless of the personnel at his disposal though, he’s been able to get the results they need. I suspect we could see a big focus here from the Dutch on packing the midfield and stifling Messi’s time on the ball and thus impacting his ability to create in space. I think the absence of Di Maria is a big blow for his pace with the Dutch a pretty quick side especially with the menacing Robben up front. It’s the Dutch here for me in a tight one and I’m leaning towards this one finishing in normal time.
Predicted score (Normal time): Netherlands 2-1
Best Bet (Normal time): Over 1.5 goals at $1.57 (85%)
Next Best: Both teams to score at $2.18
Please Note:
All of the above are the opinions of the author and are not recommendations or advice. The author may not be taking every bet listed above. Bet at your own risk.
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