After both the Netherlands and Australia exceeded expectations in their first Group B fixtures, the two teams will meet in what should be a high-octane affair on June 18.
The Dutch pulled off the first big upset of the 2014 World Cup, laying a 5-1 rout on defending World Cup champions Spain, while the Socceroos played a strong Chilean side much tougher than most thought possible. Will the Dutch be able to continue their domination in Group B? Can the Aussies salvage so much as a point in this deadly group?
[sc:Soccer240banner ]Strange as it may seem, but this year’s Netherlands team may actually be much better than the one that reached the World Cup final four years ago. Louis van Gaal has implemented a brand new formation to this Dutch side, and it worked to perfection in the Netherlands’ 5-1 demolition of defending champions Spain.
The headline grabbers were obviously the dynamic duo of Robin van Persie and Arjen Robben, who scored two goals apiece. However, credit must also go to the much younger members of the squad at the back who defended resolutely against the Spanish.
The Netherlands tore the world champions to shreds, but they will be presented with a different challenge against Australia. Spain opted to play a very high defensive line, which is how the Dutch caught them out with balls over the top of that defense to set up their first two goals.
Australia will play much closer to their own goal compared to Spain in order to limit those spaces. They will try to be compact with their shape to make themselves harder to break down.
While van Persie and Robben starred against Spain, Wesley Sneijder may be the Netherlands’ key player against Australia. Sneijder has the innate ability to thread through balls along very tight angles, ones the Dutch will likely need to unlock Australia’s packed defense.
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Betting on Australia
Australia seemed destined for a mauling after conceding twice within the first 15 minutes against Chile. What came instead was a valiant Australian fightback that saw them pull one goal back and repeatedly threaten to equalize until an injury-time Chile strike condemned them to a 3-1 defeat.
Veteran Tim Cahill was the scorer of Australia’s goal via a trademark Cahill header and terrorized Chile’s defenders all game long. At 34 years old, performances like those are more of a welcome surprise as opposed to the norm. Cahill will come up against bigger and more physical defenders against the Netherlands, but he will still be Australia’s main (and perhaps only) goal threat.
The Aussies may also adopt a more cautious approach early on against the Dutch to avoid another blitzkrieg of goals in the first half. However, as they showed against Chile, Australia may not have the willingness to sit back and defend for 90 minutes. Should they throw as many men forward again, the likes of van Persie and Robben may take advantage of those gaps at the back.
Writer’s Prediction
The Australians roll over against a Dutch team that outscores them by at least two, covering -1.5 (-120).
