World Cup 2014 Brazil » Semi-finals » Live commentary: Netherlands - Argentina 2:4

Fulltime Summary:
Argentina march on into the final against Germany and Holland will face the hosts Brazil to decide who will finish on third place! Neither the Elftal nor the Albiceleste were able to bring their a-game today, making the game being very balanced overall. The South Americans had more possession in the beginning, but failed to display any kind of dominance. Instead, Oranje managed to catch up with their opposition, but all in all both sides lacked courage and the willingness to risk something. As a result, neither of the teams were able to create any dangerous chances in the first half. This continued to be the case after play resumed, putting an absolutely slow and uneventful performance on display. Both sides had only one noteworthy attempt each, with Higuaín narrowly missing the goal in the 75th and Robben failing to find the right timing to shoot in the 90th minute. So extra time was needed to determine a winner, but it didn't provide us with a goal, either. While Robbens attempt from long range in the 99th minute was literally rather a long shot, Argentina had two chances in the final minutes. All in all, Argentinia had 47:53% possession and 8:7 attempts (5:3 on target). But again the ball didn't find the back of the net, which forced both teams into the penalty shoot-out. With the Elftal missing two of their shots, it is Alejandro Sabella's team proceeding into the final match.

Penalty scoredArgentina -> Maxi Rodriguez
Oh, what a bitter ending for the Netherlands! Maxi Rodriguez also shoots mid-high, but onto the left hand side. Cilessen is there to make a touch, but the ball still deflects from his fist into the back of the net!

Penalty scoredArgentina -> Kun Agüero
Agüero has no difficulties in converting, his precise shot into the bottom left corner is unreachable for Cilessen.

Penalty scoredArgentina -> Ezequiel Garay
What a great penalty! Garay smashes the ball into the top right corner, you just can't save a penalty like this!

Penalty scoredArgentina -> Lionel Messi
The Argentinian skipper proves to be very confident and converts with a strong finish into the bottom left corner! Cilessen is there, but he can't prevent the impact!

missed a penaltyNetherlands -> Ron Vlaar
Unbelieavable! Vlaar's weak attempt onto the left corner of the goal is parried by Romero!

Second Half of extra time ends
There it is, the next game of the knoch-out stage will be decided in a penalty shoot-out! This time the Elftal can't count on Tim Krul saving the day, but Jasper cilessen surely is eager to show that he's being as good a penalty killer as his teammate. Or will the Argentinians suceed to the final as the only South American team?

Robben tries to make an impact on the left wing, but there's no way through. Mascherano is able to clear for a throw-in.

This could've been the winning goal! Argentina send a long ball into the opposition's box and Palacio is there to convert with a header. But his attempt goes right into Cilessen's hands.

Both teams seem to have little energy left, with neither of them trying to enforce some attacks and to pressure their opposition. It more and more looks like we'll go into penalties again at this World Cup.

That's a bold move from Cilessen! For the second time in this match the young goalkeeper shows guts and manages to outplay an opponent in front of his own goal.

Halftime Summary:
The first half of extra time didn't grant us any new insight, although Holland managed to improve their stats: 53:47% possession and 5:6 attempts (2:3 on target) are a slight overhaul, nothing more. Both teams already used up their substitutions, so van Gaal can't bring Tim Krul for penalties.

Klaas Jan Huntelaar (Netherlands) is shown a yellow card
That's a really stupid challenge by Huntelaar, who is rightfully booked by the referee! The Schalke 04 striker follows Mascherano starting at Argentina's half and eventually tackles him from behind. Cüneyt Çakır virtually has no other choice than booking the 30-year-old.

Fresh bloud is coming in for Argentina, with Maxi Rodriguez replacing Lavezzi.

The game is getting wilder, with the midfielders giving up being disciplined and attacking their opponents more aggressively. It's obvious that they will do everything they can do for a win.

Unsurprisingly, both teams resume play in extra time with a slow pace. If this doesn't change, a penalty shoot-out will grow more likely by the minute.

Second Half Summary:
Robben really could've scored the winner there, if he just followed his instincts and put the ball in the back of the net at the earliest possible opportunity! The MVP of the Dutch team had the chance to prevent the teams from going into extra time, but now they have to go on for at least 30 additional minutes. Will we see van Gaal put up another tactical stroke of genius? So far this was a completely disappointing match, if you had higher expectations of the offensive qualities of both teams. Holland had 51:49% possession and 4:6 attempts (1:3 on target). So clearly, neither side managed to nearly reach their potential. Instead it was a match of two teams trying to prevent any mistakes and not taking any risks. Still it's a thrilling match, of course, so lets see what they've got in extra time!

Why is he hesitating? Robben runs through the middle and past three Argentinian defenders, then the left-footed winger finds himself completely alone in the box. But instead of shooting from about ten metres distance, he continues to approach the goal. Eventually, Robbens attempt from about four metres is blocked by Mascherano's sliding tackle.

The Netherlands have a corner from the right, but it's immediately cleared away by the Argentinian defense.

Sabella obviously is trying to strengthen his attack, substituting Palacio and Agüero for Pérez and Higuaín. So now, Argentina have an additional forward on the pitch.

What's wrong with Holland and Argentina, are they just nervous? It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that both teams are showing their worst performance at this World Cup today.

This match isn't worthy of a World Cup semi final. The game lacks movement and speed, since the teams fail to pick up the pace.

Janmaat returns on to the pitch and Holland more and more gain possession. Will van Gaal's side take over now?

Kuyt sends in a cross from the left hand side, but it's headed away by the Argentinian defense.

De Jong, wo initially was ruled out for the remainder of the tournament, seems to be tired and is replaced by Clasie. This means that as of now - with the exception of Michel Vorm - the whole Dutch squad participated in at least one match of this year's World Cup.

Well, at least they try! Lavezzi cuts inside from the right wing and finds Higuaín with a short cross. But his attempted header is denied by de Vrij.

Wow, what a great sliding tackle! Vlaar does his best to get the ball off Messi and the Aston Villa man succeeds!

Vlaar obviously has problems in dealing with Messi, who tries to get through from the left. But his teammates come to the Dutch defenseman's aid.

That's a strange scene you don't see often! Garay loses his left shoe and makes a clearance with his right foot, so he has enough time to put the other one back on. But the ref tells him to go off the pitch to do that.

Oranje have some possession now, but they fail to put it to a good use.

While Martins Indi commits a foul on Messi, Sneijder has to go off the pitch to seek medical attendance. One could've also booked the Dutch defender for his foul on the Barcelona striker, but Çakır obviously doesn't see it that way. This reminds us of Spanish ref Carlos Velasco Carballo, who tried to calm down the match between Brazil and Colombia in a similar way, not showing yellow cards for a long time but staying consistent in his decisions. We all know the result: The match escalated and Neymar was injured badly.

Is Mascherano really alright after his head clash? Standing At in front of his own box, the Barcelona man passes the ball directly onto Wijnaldum, who's unable to thrive on that horrible mistake.

To sum it up: Nothing worth mentioning happened so far, even if you don't compare the game with last night's one. But this makes things more thrilling, of course.

Again, this is painful to watch! Mascherano and Wijnaldum clash with their heads, the Argentinian loses his balance and looks like he almost loses consciousness, too. But luckily he's held by quick-witted Martins Indi before falling onto the ground and then goes off the pitch for medical attendance.

Lavezzi is very agile right now! The PSG striker runs past Blind on the right and crosses the ball, but Vlaar puts it out of play for another corner.

De Vrij prevents Higuaín from shooting! At first the centre back seems to be displaced, but then he quickly returns to his position, marking the Napoli man. The former Real Madrid striker is served by Zabaleta with a low cross, but de Vrij is able to clear for a corner.

That looks promising! After Vlaar fells Pérez at the egde of the box, la Albiceleste have a free-kick from about 18 metres distance. But Messi's direct attempt on goal is an easy catch for Cilessen.

It's a free-kick for the South Americans after de Vrij is penalised for a foul. Messi sends in a cross from the left, but no one is able to reach it and convert.

This time Kuyt finds Robben with a long ball, but the 30-year-old is offside.

Argentina are trying to maintain possession, it seems like they're looking to gain some confidence first.

The game is underway!

Being the runner-up in 2010's World Cup, the Dutch players seem to be wanting more, as Dirk Kuyt underlined: "The semi-finals are fantastic, but we know what it feels like to lose a World Cup, and we would love to win. Argentina are a world-class team and they deserve to be in the last four. But we want to measure ourselves against the best, and not only measure, but win. That's why we're here."

Oranje's only injured player left is Leroy Fer, who missed the last games of his team due to a thigh problem. On the Argentinian side, it's Ángel Di María missing the match. The Real Madrid midfielder also suffered a thigh injury in the quarter-final match against Belgium and will be replaced by Enzo Pérez as he did in that game.

Hollands skipper Robin van Persie was doubtful for today's match, since the striker suffered a stomach problem. But he recovered in time and therefore is part of the starting XI, as van Gaal already clarified yesterday: "We have more than 24 hours before the match and Robin van Persie is a very important player for us. In principle, my captains always play, but only if they're 100 percent."

Although one shouldn't focus solely on one player, both sides have one man who stands out among the rest of the team: Van Gaal's team can rely on Bayern Munich winger Arjen Robben, who "just" scored three goals, but played brilliantly in all of his 2014 world cup matches so far.

Holland beat Costa Rica after penalties in the quarter-final after both teams were unable to score in 120 minutes. Head coach Louis van Gaal had a noticeable influence since he substituted his goalkeeper just before the end of extra time. Bringing Tim Krul on for Jasper Cilessen was maybe crucial, as the Newcastle goalie was - not publicly, but inside his team - known for being a penalty killer. He foresaw the right direction on all the penalties and was able to parry two of them. Later on, van Gaal was praised for being a tactical genius.

Who will join Germany in Sunday's World Cup final? With the Elftal and the Albiceleste, we have two big football nations facing each other in a remake of a truly historic clash. Both teams met at a World Cup on four occasions: 1974 the Dutch beat Argentina 4-0 in group stage, but only four years later the South Americans had their revenge, winning the final 3-1 after extra time.