Messi’s World Cup Chase Takes Centre Stage In Q-Final Clash

09 Dec Messi’s World Cup Chase Takes Centre Stage In Q-Final Clash

Lionel Messi’s hopes of winning an elusive World Cup will come up against the tactical scheming of veteran coach Louis van Gaal as Argentina face the Netherlands in today’s quarterfinal at Lusail.

Messi, 35, once again carries his nation’s hopes on his shoulders as he looks to crown an extraordinary career that includes seven Ballon d’Or awards and multiple club titles, but only one Copa America to show for his efforts with Argentina.

Both Netherlands and Argentina lock horns at Lusail Iconic Stadium and the most common kick-off times around the world are Qatar – 2200 hours, Central Standard Time (CDT) – 1300 hours, East Coast Time (ET) – 1400 hours, Pacific Time (PT) – 1100 hours and Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) – 1900 hours.

The Netherlands are going to approach the game as the unbeaten team in this tournament, while Argentina will boast of a resurgent team getting stronger per game since losing the first match to Saudi Arabia.

The game is crucial as 35-year-old Lionel Messi has won every major accolade in the soccer world except a World Cup trophy. And, this Mundial is Messi’s last and many have wished him to win it as he draws the curtain on international football.

Having known this, the Netherlands stand in Messi’s way. The Dutch team will be the most skilled squad Argentina will play in Qatar when they meet on Friday.

The Netherlands may not boast of the greatest of all time in their team, but their skipper Virgil van Dijk is an experienced and talented defender that could give his Argentine counterpart a tough time on the pitch.

Asides from van Dijk, Netherlands play as a team with quality players like Daley Blind, Memphis Depay and Frenkie de Jong among others.

Also, Messi is not the only player in Argentina, Lautaro Martinez, Federico Fernandez and Angel Di Maria have all been fantastic in this tournament.

The two teams have no injury concerns going into this quarterfinals game, but Argentina is the favourite team to win the game. However, the Netherlands could prove difficult once again.