The Netherlands will face Argentina in the upcoming World Cup quarterfinals, and the match may hinge on the performance of the "King of Balls", Lionel Messi. Prior to the match, Dutch leader Younger said he had found Messi's flaws, but the tactical wizard chose to remain mysterious, unwilling to disclose more details, but only encouraging fans to pay close attention to his tactical arrangements at that time!
Looking back to the 2014 World Cup semi-final, the Netherlands and Argentina fought for 120 minutes, both failed to break through each other's goal, and finally Argentina beat the Netherlands in a penalty shootout to advance. Younger said before the match, "Messi is the most dangerous creative player, he can create goal scoring opportunities for his teammates as well as finish the goal himself. However, when Argentina defends, Messi is not very involved and this will be an opportunity for the Netherlands." Facing a question from a reporter, Younger responded, "I'm not going to tell you, you'll see it when the time comes."
Younger claims he has a way to deal with Messi, but it seems even his men are clueless about it. Midfielder Frankie Dijon, who plays for Barcelona and was once a teammate of Messi, said, "I know Messi very well but am not sure how to stop him. In the last 15 years he has dominated the game but no one can stop him, maybe only the whole team collaborates to have a chance."
As for Dutch center back Witsel, he has played against Messi several times in club and national team matches. He tried to downplay Messi's importance before the match, "This game is not me versus Messi, or Holland versus Messi, but Holland versus Argentina. No player can hold up the whole game alone, we will have a proper battle plan."
