Van Gaal hinted at Messi as Argentina's weak link

"Messi is the most dangerous creative player," Van Gaal told NOS on December 6. "He can create, create and score goals himself. But Messi is not involved much when Argentina lose the ball. This will open the door for us."

When asked about the tactical plan he will use to stop the Argentina captain, Van Gaal replied: "Everyone wait until Friday night. I won't reveal it now."

On the way to winning bronze at the 2014 World Cup, Van Gaal's Netherlands prevented Messi from scoring in the semi-final against Argentina, but they still lost to the South American representative 2-4 in the penalty shootout. Therefore, Van Gaal was determined to reclaim this debt and called for the support of Dutch fans on the Lusail field on December 9.

"We have old issues to deal with," he added. "I don't like to talk about that match, because I think the Netherlands will win, and I also change people to aim to win."

Messi is the inspiration to help Argentina reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup 2022. In the group stage, he scored twice, including a penalty kick in the opening match losing 1-2 to Saudi Arabia and a super long shot that opened the scoring against Mexico 2- 0. In the 1/8 round against Australia, Messi continued to make a difference with his left foot opening phase. The 35-year-old striker still had two favorable slots at the end of the game, but Lautaro Martinez was squandered.

Meanwhile, contrary to the unconvincing performance in the group stage, the Netherlands sublimated to crush the US 3-1 in the 1/8 round. They scored three goals, respectively from Memphis Depay, Daley Blind, Denzel Dumfries, all from sharp attacks on the side.

This result helps Van Gaal keep an unbeaten record with the Dutch team since he returned to lead in 2021, with 19 games. The 74-year-old leader is also unbeaten in the World Cup, excluding penalty shootouts.

If they win against Argentina, the Netherlands will clash to win the Brazil - Croatia pair in the semi-finals. In particular, Brazil is more appreciated when it just flaunted its strength with a 4-1 victory over Korea in the 1/8 round. British newspaper Sportmail said this was the best performance of a team since the 2022 World Cup started.

However, Van Gaal was not impressed with Brazil's play and results. He said: "I watched that game, Brazil was just the counter-attacking team. I read in the Dutch media that Brazil's victory was sparkling, but they were just the counter-attacking team. Only South Korea was the counter-attack team," he said. Just attack."