Argentina vs. Netherlands Free Pick for Wednesday, July 9
By Drew Sharper
BRAZIL (The Spread) – Argentina and the Netherlands will battle it out in the World Cup semifinals today at 4PM ET. Which team will prevail?
According to oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, Argentina is the favorite in this match, as it has odds of +135 to win in regulation. The Netherlands has been given a money line of +215 to win in 90 minutes, while the odds of the match being tied after 90 minutes is set at +225. The over/under total for the match has been listed at 2 goals.
Argentina reached this semifinal by beating Belgium 1-0 in the quarterfinals. The Netherlands played Costa Rica to a scoreless draw in the quarterfinals, but advanced on penalty kicks.
WORLD CUP FREE PICK: I once thought Argentina was all Lionel Messi and nothing else. They showed something different in the win over Belgium, scoring early and then defending well after that. Argentina has big-play capability behind Messi, which makes it very tough to keep them from scoring. The Netherlands is taking on its toughest opponent yet in this World Cup. The Dutch like to control and be aggressive with the ball, but against Argentina, that probably won’t happen as much as it is used to. Look for Argentina to throw the Dutch off their game, which will open the door for Messi to work his magic.
WORLD CUP FREE PICK: ARGENTINA +135