Uruguay have ruffled a few feathers on their way to the last four in South Africa but now face their toughest test to date and this could be one step too far.
Luis Suarez’s late, late handball in Friday’s clash with Ghana gave Asamoah Gyan the opportunity to seal the Black Stars’ place in the semi-finals but the striker was unable to take advantage of the gift presented as a result of Suarez’s sin and Uruguay went on to triumph on penalties.
Uruguay have been the team to take advantage of a very kind draw at these finals, having topped Group A, and that dramatic win five days ago came after a fairly timid 2-1 victory over South Korea in the second round.
Oscar Tabarez’s side had impressed in the early stages however, qualifying ahead of Mexico and thumping the hosts along the way, and I’m sure Holland won’t be underestimating them.
Holland themselves emerged on top of Group E, following convincing wins over Denmark, Japan and Cameroon, and they then got the better of Slovakia with the minimum of fuss in the last 16.
The ease with which Holland reached the last eight was a worry, they hadn’t been truly tested in South Africa in the first fortnight, but Bert van Marwijk’s men then showed tremendous courage to rally from a goal down against Brazil in their quarter-final, thanks to two Wesley Sneijder strikes, and will now fear nobody having dispatched the tournament favourites.
There was plenty to like about Holland’s performance, Brazil were clearly rattled in the second half, and perhaps this is the year when they can finally land the biggest prize of all for the very first time.
Now just 3.25 shots to go all the way, Holland will provide stern opposition to either Germany or Spain providing they can safely negotiate this clash with the two-time winners but they are plenty short enough to win the tie inside 90 minutes, just 1.66 shots, and Uruguay could just frustrate the Dutch.
In Sneijder and Arjen Robben, Holland possess two of the most creative players left in these finals but Uruguay have conceded just twice en route to the last four and will clearly be out to nullify the main threat in orange.
It has taken Holland a while to find their stride in every game in South Africa and Uruguay’s no nonsense approach may just see them keep parity until half time.
In a game of such importance, there are bound to be nerves and early chances could well be few and far between for the fear of making a potentially fatal error.
1pt Back Draw Half Time (Uruguay vs. Holland) @ 2.20 (Coral)