Sao Paulo: Lionel Messi is a win away from becoming a world champion as Argentina set up a final date with Germany by beating the Netherlands 4-2 on penalties here. After getting drenched in goal rain at Belo Horizonte, the second semi-final of the World Cup represented a veritable Sahara with the net not bulging in 120 minutes of dire action dished out by two teams that seemed to have signed a non-aggression pact before the kick-off. In the constant patter of Sao Paulo rain, the Argentines and the Dutch played out a damp squib.
Argentina’s low-profile goalkeeper Sergio Romero emerged as the unlikely hero with two fine saves in the nerve-shredder from 12 yards. There was an air of inevitability about the shootout as both teams had forsaken adventure in favour of ahimsa and fans would have welcomed it after 90 minutes. Argentina kept their proud record of not losing a semifinal intact as they rode on a fine defensive performance to reach the final for the first time since 1990.
The World Cup went from bad to worse for Brazil who have the unappetising prospect of watching their sworn enemies from the south of the border being crowned champions at the Maracana. Brazilians would be pinning their hopes on Germany to preclude the “desecration” of the nation’s football temple. Germany can count on the support of 200 million Brazilians whose dreams they had ended so brutally in the previous round.
The World Cup jinx of the Dutch continues but Louis van Gaal’s team can’t complain about the match in which they created as many chances as Arjen Robben’s hair. Anyway losing a fourth final, and a second in succession, would be more painful than crashing out in the penultimate round.
Neutral fans’ had their wish fulfilled as an inter-continental meeting has materialised on July 13 instead of a third all-European final on the trot. An improbable win for Argentina at the Maracana on Sunday will square the trophy count 10-10 in the South America vs Europe subplot.
Even though Messi wasn’t able provide water to his teammates in open play, he slotted the first spot kick in the tie-breaker coolly to put Argentina on course. As the first penalty taker after a Dutch miss, he had to succeed to inject his team a dose of confidence. Messi was spot on to send the Corinthians Arena, brimming with Argentine supporters, into raptures. Now the onus is on him to quench his nation’s thirst for a third title.
The Argentine captain was so anonymous in open play that his fans might have wondered whether their hero had been on the pitch at all. If the World Cup were to be called a marriage of Messi’s sublime skill and success, the Argentine icon was a reluctant groom on Wednesday. Maybe he was reserving his best for the final after having played a pivotal role in his team’s wins in the previous rounds.
There is something between Argentina and Germany that brings them together in the World Cup all too often. After beating West Germany to nail the trophy in 1986, Argentina lost to the same opponents in the final of the 1990 World Cup. In the last two editions, Argentina’s return flights were booked by Germany. Messi has a chance to avenge Diego Maradona’s defeat in Rome 24 years ago.
The less said the better about open play. The first World Cup semifinal to remain goalless after extra time saw the key figures in both teams doing virtually nothing. Messi didn’t touch the ball inside the box in 120 minutes while Robben hardly saw the spherical thing in an anaemic first half in which the Dutch failed to fire even one shot on target. He had a chance to settle the match in regulation time but his shot in the dying minutes was superbly blocked by Javier Mascherano. Argentina’s fared a little better in the first 45 minutes with a solitary shot on goal.
Van Gaal’s magic finally deserted him as his substitutes failed to deliver. The coach couldn’t bring in Tim Krul for Jasper Cillessen as he had exhausted his three substitutions before the shootout.
Cillessen maintained his dubious distinction of never saving a penalty in his professional career through his failure to stop all the four spot kicks of Argentina. It was a pity that central defender Ron Vlaar, the Netherlands’ best player of the evening, missed his team’s first penalty. Romero ended the faint hopes of the Dutch by diving to his right to save Wesley Sneijder’s penalty.
