Two footballing titans go head to head in the World Cup semi-finals on Wednesday as the Netherlands meet Argentina in Sao Paulo.

The Dutch scraped through to the last four thanks to a penalty-shootout victory over Costa Rica, while Argentina edged past Belgium in their quarter-final tie.

It has been 24 years since the Argentines last reached the last four of the tournament, eventually losing to Germany in the 1990 final. Meanwhile, the Netherlands made it through to the semis in 2010 before suffering an extra-time defeat to Spain in the final.

This is a fixture that has plenty of history when it comes to World Cups, with the teams taking part in some memorable encounters down the years.

Argentina's most famous triumph over the Dutch came back in 1978 when a 3-1 victory after extra time in the final saw them lift the trophy for the first time.

As for the Netherlands, Dennis Bergkamp's stunning winner in the 1998 quarter-finals provided one of the most thrilling moments in the competition's recent history.

Ron Vlaar is expected to undergo a late fitness test for Louis van Gaal's side, who have no fresh injury concerns ahead of the match.

Angel di Maria has been ruled out for Argentina with a thigh problem, but Sergio Aguero is likely to return after sitting out the last two games with a hamstring strain.

Recent form

Netherlands: WWWWWW

Argentina: WWWWWW

Possible starting lineups

Netherlands: Cillessen; De Vrij, Vlaar, Martins Indi, Blind; Sneijder, Wijnaldum, Kuyt, Depay, Robben; Van Persie

Argentina: Romero; Zabaleta, Demichelis, Garay, Basanta; Biglia, Mascherano; Perez, Aguero, Messi; Higuain

Sports Mole says: 2-1

Written by
Jack Prescott

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