DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Lionel Messi takes on Virgil van Dijk. The youngest coach of the World Cup taking the largest South America vs. Europe. A back catalog of famous meetings.
The quarterfinal match between Argentina and the Netherlands has all the makings of a classic.
And the possibility of it being Messi’s last game on football’s biggest stage adds to the anticipation.
The seven-time world player of the year is three wins away from achieving his ultimate dream, but he has two people, in particular, blocking his way.
First of all, the not inconsiderable structure of Van Dijk, who has been one of the best defenders in the world for the last five years. If there is someone capable of stopping Messi in one of his characteristic dribbles, it is Liverpool’s graceful centre-back, who combines speed with a great reading of the game.
And then there’s Louis van Gaal, the shrewd 71-year-old tactician, who recently underwent successful treatment for prostate cancer and is now plotting to win the World Cup in perhaps the last job of his 26-year coaching career.
Van Gaal, who has long been one of the most charismatic characters in football, approaches this task with great amusement. – even on the eve of one of the biggest games of his career.
On Thursday, he was told that Ángel Di María, who plays for Argentina, believes he is the worst manager he has ever played under after their time together at Manchester United in 2014-15.
Van Gaal said it was a pity that Di Maria felt this way: “he is one of the few players who has said that,” he commented, “as is often the other way around”, adding that he once had a fight. with the captain of the Netherlands, Memphis Depay, who was sitting next to him.
“Now we kiss,” Van Gaal said, leaning toward Depay with arms outstretched.
Van Gaal was also asked how he planned to stop Messi, a question many managers over the years have been unable to find an answer to.
“It would be pretty stupid to reveal your own tactics,” he said, smiling. “But it’s not that hard to come up with an answer. You could have found an answer yourself. You may want to block and close the passing lines. Am I right, Memphis?
As for his Argentine counterpart, Lionel Scaloni, 44, is a relative rookie after taking charge of his country in 2018 for his first senior coaching role. Still, he already led Argentina to the Copa América title last year, the country’s first major trophy since 1993, and managed to stabilize his team after a stunning loss to Saudi Arabia. in their first group match.
Although Van Gaal predicted a close match that will be resolved at a “decisive moment”, Scaloni said it will be a “beautiful match because we are talking about two teams that want to attack but can also defend.”
It is set to be a clash of styles between two of football’s storied powerhouses, with two-time champions Argentina preferring to play a game of possession and the Dutch, three-time beaten finalists, now typically playing on the counter-attack under Van. Gaal.
They have met in some high-profile World Cup matches, none bigger than the 1978 final won by Argentina at home. There was also a round of 16 game in 1998, won by the Netherlands thanks to a wonderful 90th-minute goal from Dennis Bergkamp, and then a penalty shootout victory for Argentina in the semi-finals in 2014.
Messi played in that match and was kept relatively quiet by a team Van Gaal was also coaching. Eight years later, Messi is still Argentina’s star player and he delivered his best performance at this World Cup in a 2-1 win over Australia. in the round of 16.
“The tournament starts tomorrow for us, really,” Van Gaal said. “Although I don’t want to downplay the other countries we’ve beaten, Argentina and then potentially Brazil in the next round are different countries than the ones we’ve played so far.”
Scaloni pressed on the fitness of midfielder Rodrigo De Paul, who could be a doubt according to some reports in the Argentine media, but left little to be seen.
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Steve Douglas is in https://twitter.com/sdouglas80
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AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/world-cup Y https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
