On the other hand, Argentina's toughest opponent is Brazil if they meet. however, before that game at least Argentina must beat the Netherlands first. after that, Argentina will face Brazil. if the scenario is like this. then the meeting between Argentina vs Portugal will occur. sadly, all that's been said is just a scenario. the reason is, that the other national teams that I mentioned here have a greater chance of advancing to the final round of this world cup.
the chance that Argentina will meet Brazil is in the semifinals. that is if Argentina can beat the Netherlands. not to mention that there was Krosia who was a contestant in the previous final.
if we look at the current chart, it is difficult to predict the final round. France, which is certain to qualify for the quarter-finals, is also likely to meet England if it can beat Senegal.
just speculation, maybe the final match is Portugal vs Brazil. or Argentina vs France.
If we talk player data scenario, statistics and ranking. The Netherlands is not the biggest obstacle for a team of Argentina's level. both Holland and Argentina, not here with players as popular as France and Portugal and even England. Argentina only has Messi and D Maria who have big names, while Lautaro Martinez and Julian Alvarez are not too popular for a line of shining star levels. As for Dybala, so far there is no certainty whether or not he will play in this world cup. Injury problems, too, are rarely exposed to sports media.
on the Netherlands side, the schemes and patterns they played during the group phase were quite readable by ordinary people like us. Van Gal's pattern and strategy scheme, always relying on his midfielders. variants of the Dutch playing pattern are effective when playing against teams below them, but against Ecuador, how difficult it is when the Dutch play very openly.
The Netherlands has a young player who is starting to shine, Cody Gakpo and several names like Depay and De Jong, Van Dijk at the back. On paper, Argentina will beat the Netherlands. However, in football it is not only based on statistics, when on the field it requires readiness, mentality and teamwork that determines victory, plus a little luck.
Croatia today, not Croatia 4 years ago. even if they win against Japan, it will be Brazil who will stop them from advancing to the next stage. even if Portugal wins against Spain, it will be difficult for them to beat England, especially if the opponent is France. I am quite optimistic, France and England will wait in the final round later. which is quite tense and difficult to predict is, Argentina vs Brazil in the semifinals.
by the way, Argentina and Netherlands are my two Favorite teams in this championship. unfortunately, they will meet in the round of 8.