Why We Should All Be Rooting For A Brazil-Holland Final Match

With today’s win over a very impressive Australia side, the Netherlands booked their place in the Round of 16 for this summer’s World Cup finals. All that remains about Group B is whether Holland or Chile will come out as group winners, a fact that we will all discover at the close of their game against each other next week. And both nation’s want nothing more than to come out on top, because despite already qualifying, the second place team in the group will likely have to face the probable winner’s of Group A, Brazil. Though I’ll admit my immense bias toward the Oranje, fans of great football should be rooting for the Netherlands in their next game against an overachieving Chilean side, because it could set the ball rolling towards one of the greatest finals in recent memory.

Holland sub Memphis Depay scores the long range winning goal in today’s Group B match vs. Australia

Assuming that the Netherlands do win their group, they’ll have to face either Croatia or Mexico. Staunch opposition, yes, but not unbeatable for the 2010 runners-up. With their ability to successfully execute the famous Dutch 4-3-3, as well as Louis Van Gaal’s new 5-3-2 formation, they should be able to outmaneuver Croatia, while Mexico would require a more direct approach to beat, something that Holland proved it could do today against a surprisingly scrappy Australian XI.

They’d then likely have to get past the winners of Group D (Italy, in my opinion), as well as that of Group F, Argentina. These are two of the most difficult sides in the competition, and are both full of talent. Italy are a dynamic side with some of the best players in the competition; one needs only to see the wonder that was Andrea Pirlo and Claudio Marchisio’s well executed corner kick routine against England last week to see that. Regardless, injuries seem to be plaguing the Azzurri camp, with starters Gigi Buffon, Mattia De Sciglio, Andrea Barzagli, and Daniele De Rossi all out as of now, forcing many of their players to play out of position to compensate for their absence. If the Dutch can avoid the same problems, they have more than just a good chance of beating Italy at their own three-man-at-the-back game.

Argentina’s starting formation against Bosnia-Herzegovina in their World Cup 2014 opener

Argentina are still one of the favorites to win the competition – statistically higher than the Dutch themselves. However, with the stuttering witnessed in their game against Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Argentines have some work to do if they want to beat the Dutch in a potential semifinal match. In an attempt to make Lionel Messi the main man for Argentina (as though he wasn’t already), coach Alejandro Sabella opted for a front two of Messi and Sergio Agüero, leaving Napoli ace Gonzalo Higuaín on the bench for the first part of the match. He also opted for a three man backline, with Pablo Zabaleta and Marco Rojo as his wingbacks; they couldn’t deliver the goods until the second half, when they reverted to their normal back four. Who knows what formation the Argentinians will use for the rest of the tournament, but with the Dutch’s tactical flexibility, this game would be one to watch, and one to remember.

I don’t think I need to make a very strong case for why the Brazilians should make it to the final. Don’t get me wrong – they’ll have to face some very stiff competition on the way there. Potential clashes against England, Costa Rica, France, and 2010 third-place finishers Germany mean a tough road to the final for Brazil. Regardless, their talent, depth, flair, and goalscoring potential should be enough to push them through any of those tests, assuming that they work out the rest of the kinks we’ve seen in their two matches against Croatia and Mexico.

A potential final between these two sides would be epic. Three-time runners-up Holland playing for redemption against five-time winners Brazil playing in front of their countrymen. You couldn’t ask for a better storyline for that script.

But its not just their stories that should make the game exciting. There’s a saying that the English may have invented football, but the Brazilians perfected it. Some would dispute this fact (although a good source if you’re interested in the history of football tactics would be Inverting the Pyramid by Jonathan Wilson), saying instead that the Dutch established the basics upon which the modern game is founded. Both points are valid. The two nations, each with its own philosophy, have produced some of the greatest footballers of the last 75 years. And yet every team in the world plays some variation of the Dutch Totaalvoetbal, even Luiz Felipe Scolari’s Brazil side. A final between these two would mean that no matter who wins, the World Cup trophy is moving back to where it belongs, back to those who created it in its modern form.

Former Brazil playmaker Kaká playing in the 2010 World Cup quarterfinal against eventual runners-up Holland. The match ended 2-1 to the Dutch.

Almost every football fan alive has these two countries to thank for all the enjoyment that they currently enjoy from the game. They’re the reason that we can call this game beautiful. We should be honored to be able to watch a match with this much meaning behind it.

Not that I’m telling you who to root for…I’m just giving suggestions.