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Featured Image Credit: Alamy/OP1
Topics: Football, Rafael van der Vaart, Lionel Messi, Football World Cup
Nasir Jabbar
Topics: Football, Rafael van der Vaart, Lionel Messi, Football World Cup
Fans have furiously slammed Rafael van der Vaart's 'arrogant' prediction for the Netherlands vs. Argentina.
The Netherlands face Lionel Messi's Argentina for a spot in the World Cup semi-finals, with Van der Vaart confident of an 'easy' victory.
He's backed Louis van Gaal's side to beat La Albiceleste, predicting a 3-0 win, while taking aim at Messi's international colleagues.
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On OP1, he said: "Messi showed himself once again this tournament, but the guys around him are.. not so great."
Asked for a score prediction, he replied: "It will be easy! 3-0 The Netherlands."
Naturally, Van der Vaart's bold prediction angered fans online, with some people calling out the Dutch media's 'arrogance'.
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One Twitter user wrote: "As much as people hate on the English for their 'arrogance' the Dutch genuinely are the most arrogant nation especially for a country that has never won the World Cup."
A second tweeted: "I'm not even a fan of Argentina but how I want them to humble these guys..."
A third joked: "Can’t wait to see Van Der Faart and the rest of the Dutch media eat their words tomorrow."
A fourth commented: "Way too much talking they're gonna lose so bad."
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Another said: "If Argentina manages to win against Netherlands, we cook this guy for good."
Van der Vaart, who enjoyed a spell at Real Madrid before signing for Tottenham, also recalled his duels with Messi.
"I played against Messi. You couldn’t catch him. You wanted to kick him but he was already gone," he explained.
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"Now he is slower and he walks even more, but he can still give that crucial pass. Ronaldo relies on his body and goals but Messi is much more than just goals.
"I played at Real Madrid. We put Sergio Ramos on Messi. If he goes in that direction? You go with him. If he goes to the toilet? You go with him.
"After the game, he was toyed around with. It’s so hard to defend him. Maybe it’s better for us not to mark him."
The Netherlands booked their spot in the World Cup quarter-finals with an impressive 3-1 win over USA.
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As for Argentina, they beat Australia 2-1, with Messi and Julian Alvarez getting on the score-sheet.
Who'll advance to the semi-finals? Let us know.