World Cup semifinal preview

It's hard to say which team will feel more pressure in Wednesday's semi-final clash. It's been 24 years since Argentina have played in a World Cup final - far too long a span for a nation that considers itself one of the globe's footballing giants. But at least the Gauchos have won the big prize twice - while the Netherlands the country that invented totaalvoetbal have totally failed to lift the trophy.

The two teams have met four times in the World Cup, twice in Germany, with the Dutch winning twice and losing and drawing one match each. The last time they faced off was in 2006 in Gelsenkirchen the result was a dreary scoreless draw. Superstar Lionel Messi started in that match for Argentina - fleet-footed Dutch winger Arjen Robben didn't get off the bench.

That won't happen on Wednesday - at least where Robben is concerned - but a goalless draw might not be a bad prediction. With the exception of the Netherlands' opening demolition of Spain, both the Gauchos and the Dutch have ridden a series of narrow victories into the semis. So does either team have an advantage?

Argentinian injury worries

Messi has been forced to drop back from the center-forward position he plays for Barcelona in an attempt to get Argentina's other attacking players involved. But the Albiceleste have been hit by injuries precisely to those positions.

Argentina's second-best offensive option, winger Angel di Maria, will miss the Netherlands match with a pulled muscle. And Sergio Aguero is struggling with a thigh injury and hasn't played since Argentina's final group stage match.

That puts "the Messiah" under even more pressure to carry the team, and coach Alejandro Sabella has made no bones about the fact that his team depends upon moments of brilliance from the diminutive dribbler. On the other hand, Sabella may be tempted to field a slightly more defensive starting line up against Netherlands.

Argentina's pair of veterans in central defense - Martin Demichelis and Ezequiel Garay - have held up well during the tournament, anchoring two straight 1-0 wins over decent attacking opponents Switzerland and Belgium.

The Dutch have more quality than those sides, but the Gauchos will feel that the longer they keep a clean sheet, the better their chances of progressing will be.

Another ace up his sleeve?

The big question for the Netherlands is how much risk they want to take against Messi and co. So far they've shown they can play both sorts of games. Against Spain and Chile, the Dutch sat back and punished their adversaries on the counter-attack. Against Mexico and Costa Rica, Oranje dominated possession and ultimately ground out results.

Even in their depleted state, of course, Argentina present more of a danger than either of those two opponents. Key for the Netherlands will be the performance of Arjen Robben, who - when not flopping around the pitch in an effort to gain unfair advantages - has been fantastic. The winger has been given freedom to roam. That's made him more unpredictable and left foes with a harder time defending against his signature left-footed cuts into the middle.

In any case, expect the unexpected. Dutch coach Louis van Gaal has torn up the rule book during this World Cup, for instance by swapping goalkeepers before the penalty shoot-out against Costa Rica on Saturday.

Thus far, the gruff ex-Bayern coach has won with every role of the dice, substituting in both of Holland's goal-scorers in their 2-0 victory over Chile and match-winner Klaas-Jan Huntelaar in their 2-1 come-from-behind triumph over Mexico. But he thinks there is no favorite.

"I would say it's going to be a 50-50 match and we have to be a bit lucky," van Gaal told reporters on Tuesday. "The coin has to face your way, as we say in Dutch."

Dutch captain and forward Robin van Persie is said to be battling a stomach virus and is in doubt. So don't be surprised if van Gaal shakes things up again when the Netherlands battle Argentina for a ticket to the biggest show in football.