MARCOS SEMIFINALS PREDICTION #2: MATCH: Netherlands vs. Argentina These two teams have been playing with a similar tactical lineup: quality up front (three world-class specialists) and quantity behind (lots of bodies in defense). The trajectory of their world cup has been opposite: The Netherlands started out with a delirious 5-1 victory over reigning champion Spain and has since been having an increasingly hard time against lesser rivals while Argentina started out playing low-ranked teams as if its only weapon was The Messi Bailout(TM) but has since found a more effective and convincing game against slightly better rivals. BUT the real question is: what on earth is Argentina even doing in the semifinals? No unbiased observer would rank their performance in this tournament as being in the top 4. Not even the top 10. If you dont believe me, look at their games again, and compare them with the sorts of games that were being played by, say, Colombia, France, Mexico, Ghana... or -- even England for that matter. This Argentina looks like it reached this stage of the tournament mostly because of how the tournament was structured. They probably have a lot more to give than what they have shown so far, so we might be in for a surprise when they are actually put to the test. But at this stage of the tournament, the team that has not been put to the test is usually the one that will be flushed out. While the Dutch have shown that they can come from behind, can adjust their tactics to an opponents, can clobber top-rated teams and win penalty shootouts, the Argentines have looked like little more than a team that can improve its game from pulling off a narrow last-minute victory against Iran to pulling off a narrow last-minute victory against Switzerland. The game against Belgium showed Argentina at their strongest, but also Belgium at their weakest (and thats saying a lot), so it was still not a real test. Of course, even at this stage there is the possibility of an upset or of another Messi Bailout(TM), but its more likely that the time has come for Argentina to be shown off. WINNER: Netherlands
Posted on: Mon, 07 Jul 2014 19:44:17 +0000
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