Will the Albiceleste’s run continue?
Only the encounters between Brazil and Sweden and Argentina and Germany (seven times each) have been more frequent at a World Cup than the clash between Holland and Argentina, which takes place on Friday night for the sixth time at World Cup level. In a rematch of the 1978 World Cup final, Holland vs Argentina betting must take into account that in nine international matches, the Elftal have only lost this final to the Albiceleste.
The last time the two nations faced each other was in the semifinals of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. The South Americans won the match 4:2 on penalties after 120 goalless minutes. Oranje have a correspondingly large score to settle with the Gauchos. An interesting aspect of the Holland vs. Argentina prediction is that in the World Cup matches between the two nations, the team that scored first always progressed.
The answer to the question of who will reach the 2022 World Cup semi-finals therefore also depends on whose defence is better. So far, the Elftal have been very good at keeping the Albiceleste away from their own goal. In nine international matches, Holland have conceded only six goals against Argentina and have kept their clean sheet three times in a row.
A very promising bet, therefore, is that this nominal treat will tend not to be too high-scoring. We are therefore betting on under 2.5 goals in regulation time, with the potential for extra time being particularly high.
Holland – Statistics & current form
The Dutch national football team was crowned European champions in Germany in 1988. However, the Oranje have yet to win the World Cup, which is closely linked to today’s opponents Argentina.
The Elftal suffered a painful defeat in extra time against the Albiceleste in the 1978 final, before the South Americans also halted the Dutch’s strong run at the 2014 World Cup in the semi-finals (4-2 defeat on penalties). Accordingly, the Netherlands are now also seeking a measure of revenge.
Unbeaten in eleven World Cup games
The record is quite positive for the Oranje. In nine international matches against Argentina, the Netherlands have lost only one game (four wins, four draws), namely the aforementioned 1978 World Cup final. Most recently, Holland have kept a clean sheet in three consecutive international matches against the Albiceleste.
In any case, the Eleven are in very good form going into this World Cup quarter-final. The number eight in the FIFA World Ranking has not lost any of its last eleven World Cup matches (eight wins, three draws) – the longest unbeaten streak at this tournament in Dutch football history to date.
Only three goals conceded in last nine World Cup matches
The fact that Oranje are so hard to beat is largely down to their superb defence, which has conceded just three goals in the last nine World Cup matches. Never in this period have they conceded more than one goal per World Cup match. Consequently, the Netherlands have conceded no goals in six of their last nine World Cup matches.
It is therefore all the more surprising that the betting odds on Holland against Argentina are against the Dutch, who have always had the upper hand in their last three appearances in a World Cup quarter-final (1998, 2010 and 2014). With Bet-at-home offering odds of 3.75 on bet 1, the Elftal are still the underdogs.
Predicted Netherlands line-up:
Noppert – Blind – Aké – van Dijk – Timber – Dumfries – de Jong – de Roon – Klaassen – Depay – Gakpo
Last matches played by Netherlands:
WM Final Round
03/12/2022 – Netherlands 3 – 1 USA
World Cup Group A
29/11/2022 – Netherlands 2 – 0 Qatar
25/11/2022 – Netherlands 1 – 1 Ecuador
21/11/2022 – Senegal 0 – 2 Netherlands
UEFA Nations League A Grp. 4
26/09/2022 – Netherlands 1 – 0 Belgium
Argentina – Statistics & current form
Argentina’s national football team continues to be at an all-time high in form. Not only did the Albiceleste crown themselves South American champions for the first time in 28 years at the Copa América in the summer of 2021, but they are also in the quarter-finals of the World Cup once again.
Although the start in Qatar was very bumpy with a surprising 2-1 defeat against Saudi Arabia, Argentina went on to win three games in a row. After that, however, Argentina won three games in a row for a total of 6:1 goals and left nothing to be desired.
Only lost one of the last 40 internationals
The reigning Copa América champions are in good form, as a look at their last few internationals shows. Since losing to Brazil at the Copa América 2019, the Albiceleste have lost only one of their subsequent 40 international matches (29 wins, ten draws) – the aforementioned 1-2 against Saudi Arabia, which was completely inconsequential due to their eventual group win.
After a short dry spell at World Cup level with just one win from seven consecutive World Cup matches (two draws, four defeats), Lionel Scaloni’s troops also managed to win three World Cup matches in a row for the first time again.
Messi finally successful in the knockout phase too
When it comes to Holland against Argentina, it’s a good bet that the Albiceleste will be able to overcome the big hurdle and advance to the semi-finals, where they could potentially face arch-rivals Brazil, who are also among the big 2022 World Cup favourites.
It is a great advantage that superstar Messi finally scored for the Gauchos for the first time in a knockout match of a World Cup in the 2-1 victory over Australia, thus breaking the curse. The multiple world footballer has been directly involved in seven of the Albiceleste’s last 12 World Cup goals (four goals, three assists) and could also be a decisive factor in the quarter-finals.
Predicted line-up of Argentina:
Martínez – Acuna – Otamendi – Romero – Molina – Mac Allister – Fernández – de Paul – Gómez – Álvarez – Messi
Last matches played by Argentina:
World Cup Final Round
04/12/2022 – Argentina 2 – 1 Australia
World Cup Group C
01/12/2022 – Poland 0 – 2 Argentina
27/11/2022 – Argentina 2 – 0 Mexico
22/11/2022 – Argentina 1 – 2 Saudi Arabia
Friendlies
16/11/2022 – United Arab Emirates 0 – 5 Argentina
Netherlands – Argentina Direct comparison / H2H Ranking
Head to head: 4 – 4 – 1
There have been nine international matches between the two teams so far, with the only game that has gone down as a defeat for the Netherlands dating back to the 1978 World Cup final. The most recent encounter between the two nations ended in a goalless draw in the 2014 World Cup semi-final, before the Albiceleste prevailed 4-2 in a penalty shoot-out.
Netherlands – Argentina Tip
With Holland against Argentina, it must be taken into account in the prediction that both teams have strong weapons on the offensive, but were primarily convincing defensively. Against this backdrop, Oranje have kept a clean sheet in six of their last nine World Cup matches and are now unbeaten in eleven World Cup games. This contrasts, however, with the Albiceleste, whose 2-1 defeat to Saudi Arabia in the group stage was their only loss in the last 40 international matches.
Between two real heavyweights in world football, a single goal could potentially decide the match, with extra time also far from unlikely. Accordingly, the bet on less than 2.5 goals provides a lot of value.
