And then there were two. A match-up that does not surprise many pundits is going to be the final of the greatest show on earth this Sunday.
Argentina will be taking on Germany for the third time in a final after 1986 and 1990.
Though the South American's semi-final victory over the Netherlands was like a universe away from the German exploits at Belo Horizonte yesterday, the better all-round team won the day.
The first half was cagey, a tactical duel between Louis Van Gaal and Alejandro Sabella.
Van Gaal’s defenders held on well, despite wobbles from Bruno Martins Indi who was pressed every time he received possession.
A yellow was duly received after persistent fouling on Lionel Messi (earning him a substitution at half-time for Daryl Janmaat), the diminutive Argentine getting the best of his markers constantly only to be thwarted by brilliant covering from Nigel De Jong and Giorginio Wijnaldum.
Indeed, the image of Messi being held within arms length by Nigel De Jong harked back to Claudio Gentile’s man-marking job on Diego Maradona at the 1982 World Cup, when Italy started their unstoppable run to the title in the second round, beating Argentina.
The Dutch looked to break on occasion, but the Argentine defence easily dealt with long diagonal balls to Robin Van Persie. Let's face it, expecting the Dutchman to overpower and hold off Ezequiel Garay and Martin Demichelis is quite a folly.
Wesley Sneijder, meanwhile, failed to dictate play, unable to escape the clutches of Javier Mascherano and Lucas Biglia.
Argentina had better chances to threaten the Netherlands, Ezequiel Lavezzi using his burst of pace to repeatedly beat either Daley Blind or Bruno Martins Indi down the right flank.
Lavezzi’s driven crosses were brilliantly dealt with though by Ron Vlaar, who was also doing a great job keeping Gonzalo Higuain under wraps.
And to sum up how little creativity and effort Netherlands put to this match, the one player most likely to create a goalscoring opportunity for the Oranje, Arjen Robben, was not the same burst of energy as in previous matches, and was quite comfortably handled wherever he roamed.
On the hour mark, De Jong was taken off for Feyenoord boy Jordy Clasie. De Jong's return from an injury, which many thought would keep him out of the rest of the tournament, surprised many and it was too soon to expect the Dutch midfield enforcer to see out the full 90 minutes.
However, Clasie managed to keep things neat in possession and provided energy off the bench.
Not surprisingly, the Feyenoord midfielder also continued the international past-time of fouling Messi.
Sabella finally played his hand with under 10 minutes remaining in normal time – Rodrigo Palacio and Sergio Aguero were both introduced for Enzo Perez and Gonzalo Higuain.
The attacking switch did little to faze the Dutch defence, though, as Ron Vlaar maintained what had been an outstanding performance with crucial interceptions all across his own half.
Robben had a late chance to snatch the win for the Oranje, brilliantly dancing past Demichelis to have Sergio Romero at his mercy in injury time, but Javier Mascherano provided possibly the tackle of the tournament to prevent the ball flying into the net and ultimately forcing the extra time.
The Little Chief, as Mascherano is better known, was an absolute monster in midfield, often dropping in between his centre-backs to play the libero role. A great reader of the game, Mascherano has established himself as a world class defensive midfielder.
Robin Van Persie, having a performance to forget, was withdrawn in the first period of extra-time for Klaas-Jan Huntelaar. Van Gaal opting for a striker as his trump card instead of a goalkeeper this time.
This could have been the signal for Sabella to recognise that the Dutch would be pressing forward and hoping to win the game in open play. Hence the decision to introduce Maxi Rodriguez for Ezequiel Lavezzi, as Argentina were preparing themselves for penalties, also knowing that specialist Dutch keeper Tim Krul could not be brought in.
Rodriguez's experience and composure helped Argentina regain control of the tempo of this tie. It seemed that the match was tilting further and further into Van Gaal’s hands, Messi being strangely ineffectual with his touch letting him down often in extra time, and Aguero’s introduction being the most noticeable highlight of his involvement on the pitch.
A glorious opportunity fell for Rodrigo Palacio late in extra time, his meek header going straight into the grateful arms of Jasper Cillessen.
Not long after, Messi burst down the flank past Vlaar and whipped a great cross to the far post where Rodriguez waited, but his miscued volley once again comfortably falling into Cillessen’s arms. One would think that Messi could have actually brought the ball further in, and if not having a shot at goal, at least won a penalty.
Penalties it was then, a cruel way to end a football match, but for this specific game, absolutely necessary.
The Argentinians were clinical in the shootout, whereas Vlaar and Sneijder both saw their penalties stopped by an almost-possessed Romero, eyes burning with elation after each save. And those were truly great saves, too, especially with Sneijder'a kick going high and to the far right of Romero's goalmouth.
It must be a truly horrific 24 hours for Brazilian fans – getting unceremoniously dumped out of the World Cup on your home soil 7-1, and then see your South American neighbours and fiercest rivals advance to face the Germans at the Maracana.
No prizes for guessing which team the Selecao fans in Brazil will be rooting for. – July 10, 2014.
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