Netherlands vs Argentina FIFA World Cup 2022 Highlights: ARG beat NED on penalties after sensational Dutch fightback

21 mins: Goes over the bar! And quite a few metres above it as well. The first real shy he has had at the goal today. That shot came after a long period in which the Netherlands sucked the life out of the game. And after that shot, the Netherlands continue doing the same. It hasn't been the e most thrilling of 20 minutes of football. 

Netherlands have had more of the ball in these last 15 mins, and that means that there hasn't been much happening. The Dutch have been as pragmatic as ever but unable to thread too many passes together in the Argentine final third. 

 Can't really say if either side has truly pulled away from the other but Argentina have looked more likely to score. Dutch goalkeeper Andries Noppert gave everyone a little scare by playing a risky pass that went just past the extended leg of Julian Alvarez to a centre back. 

Argentina push forward but their attack fizzles out just at the edge of the box after they come up against an Orange wall. It might be that kind of a game for them today. 

Here we go then! Both teams in their iconic traditional colours. Argentina attacking from right to left. The Argentine national anthem was absolutely thundered out by the majority of the fans who are wearing Argentina's colours. 

Here they are! Virgil Van Dijk leads out the Dutch, Lionel Messi leads out the Argentines. Netherlands national anthem comes first, then Argentina's. Go on. Feel it in the air. 

Lionel Messi gave #2013vibes with how he was prancing circles around the Australian defence. He first scored his first World Cup knockout goal and went past Maradona's tally in this tournament. He could have then assisted at least one more, had it not been for Lisandro Martinez's misfiring feet, and almost scored another in the last 10 minutes. But Netherlands are no Australia, let's see how the maestro handles with this. 

Louis Van Gaal had revealed in Aprl that he had received 25 radiation treatments for an aggressive form of prostate cancer and he kept the diagnosis from his players during their World Cup qualifying campaign. Defender Daley Blind said the 71-year-old’s illness, and how he handled the situation, is on the players’ minds in Qatar. “Of course it is in the back of our heads,” the Ajax defender said. “From the first moment we didn’t know about it. He did everything he could to keep it from us. He was even going to the hospital during the nights, so as not to show the team what he was going through.

So, Angel di Maria started it off by saying that Louis Van Gaal was the ‘worst manager' of his career. Van Gaal replied by saying that Memphis Depay, who was sitting with his default player's face for press conferences beside him, also had to deal with him at Man United and now they ‘kiss each other on the mouth’, leading to Depay's statue face to break. And then, came the little joust with the media over tactics. “I get the same question from you every time but you don’t understand that football is evolving,” he said in a tone of exasperation. “At this World Cup we see that the results are very tight, even between big teams and supposedly smaller countries, because compact defending is simply easier than attacking. But it’s not true if it seems we are only defending. I hope that is clear now.”

Can you smell it?

A little team called Brazil ARE OUT OF THE WORLD CUP!!!!!! Well Croatia have done a real number on the five-time champions. Brazil's World Cup campaign seemed to have come alive in a burst of splendid colours when Neymar scored a truly lovely goal in the first half of extra time. But then Croatia scored the equaliser through Bruno Petkovic. Then, Croatia did their thing in the penalties and BRAZIL HAVE BEEN KNOCKED OUT. Argentina are now the only South American team left in the tournament. Talk about seismic results. 

Noppert; Timber, Van Dijk, Ake; Dumfries, De Roon, De Jong, Blind; Gakpo; Depay, Bergwijn.

E Martinez; Romero, Otamendi, Lisandro Martinez; Molina, De Paul, Fernandez, Mac Allister, Acuna; Messi, Alvarez.

There has been a bit of a war of words between the two camps already, chiefly between Louis Van Gaal and Angel di Maria. There was also some sparring between Van Gaal and the media in the press conference over his tactics. Well, Croatia have proven that the only thing that matters, is winning, when they did a number over Brazil.