Netherlands (National Football)

Netherlands and Chile each have six points in group play with two wins, meaning each squad has already advanced to the last 16 of the 2014 World Cup.

However, this match remains crucial, as the second-place finisher in the group may have to play Brazil in the round of 16.

Chile has conceded just one goal in group play, and their defense was great in their surprise 2-0 win over Spain, which ousted the defending World Cup champion from the tournament.

Sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com have been unanimous in setting tight World Cup betting odds for this Group B match: Netherlands 8-5, Chile 7-4 and a draw line posted at around 13-5.

The Dutch offense has been on fire, scoring eight goals so far, but they head into this encounter without their big gun on the attack, Robin van Persie, who picked up his second yellow card in Netherlands' last outing and will have to sit this one out.

Chile’s midfield played great in the Spain match and has to do the same facing Arjen Robben and the Dutch midfield. While Holland’s offense has been in top form, their defense was not impressive against Australia in their last group match and conceded two goals.

The Dutch have pace in the midfield, which is how they create many of their scoring chances.

Arturo Vidal and Charles Aranguiz, who scored one goal and set up the other in the 2-0 win against Spain, are both dealing with minor injuries and are doubts for this match. Both are also carry yellow cards, so they may be rested to avoid getting a second yellow and sitting out the first round of 16 match through suspension.

Chile may be a little shorthanded, but they cannot just drop back on defense, as they need the win since the draw helps the Dutch, who own a better goal differential.

Both Netherlands and Chile will score, but the match will end in a 1-1 draw, meaning the Dutch will win the group and the South American squad finish second.

Regardless, Group B betting did not shake out the way oddsmakers predicted just a week ago.

Chile vs. Netherlands prediction: 1-1 draw

Stats, odds courtesy of Odds Shark.

The Netherlands men's soccer team is turning heads so far in this year's FIFA World Cup after beating Australia 3-2 on Wednesday, proving their 5-1 drubbing of Spain was not a fluke.

With just one more win needed to complete the sweep of Group B, the Dutch have scored eight goals in just two matches, the highest of any team thus far, and are well on their way to becoming a favorite to win it all.  

After dismantling the defending champs, Netherlands fought back from a 2-1 second-half deficit to defeat the Aussies, putting the Dutch in the drivers seat of Group B.

With a 20th-minute goal from Netherlands' Arjen Robben, the Dutch looked poised to cruise to an easy win. An Australian goal a minute later and another just after half-time would ensure the Oranje had to fight for their second win of the World Cup, and they did.

Robin van Persie found the net in the 58th minute for the equalizer. Minutes later, Memphis Depay blasted the longest-range goal of the World Cup thus far, with a dipping strike past Australian 'keeper Mathew Ryan.

Superstars Robben and Van Persie have scored three goals apiece in these first two contests, including the latter's flying header against Spain that may have been the goal of the tournament so far. 

In just two contests, the Dutch have used brute force, aggressive ball control and incredible efficiency to help boost them to the 2-0 start.

The efficiency is evident by their combined 28 shots, with 25 shots on goal (see below), and the brute force illustrated by their 43 combined fouls, including three players in the top 10 for total fouls in the tournament so far, according to FIFA.com. 

Despite Spain not being the dominate team they were expected to be, the Dutch proved they can play against anyone. Only Chile stand between them and a sweep of Group B.

Regardless, the Oranje have secured a spot in the knockout stage and should be one of the favorites to reach the World Cup final on July 13.

Netherlands moved on to six points in the FIFA World Cup Group B on Wednesday after coming from behind to beat Australia.

Arjen Robben had given the Dutch the lead in the 20th minute but Australia's Tim Cahill did his best impression of that legendary Marco van Basten strike to draw his side level.

Mile Jedinak's penalty put the Socceroos in front in the second half, but Robin van Persie and Memphis Depay combined to steal the three points in a tight affair.

Formations & XIs

Australia set out in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Mark Bresciano a deep No. 10, Ryan McGowan in for Ivan Franjic at right-back and Matt McKay in for Mark Milligan in central midfield.

Netherlands continued in their 3-5-2 set, with no changes to the XI after Ron Vlaar and Daley Blind shook off injury concerns. Robben, Robin van Persie and Wesley Sneijder completed a fierce attacking trident on paper.

Penned In

Australia started strongly, retaining the ball with a degree of confidence and setting a high stance up the pitch in defence.

Cahill, Bresciano, Mathew Leckie and Tommy Oar closed down the Dutch ballplayers very well, forcing quicker decisions and punts out of defence.

Problems ensued from here, as the 3-5-2 only lends two men to central midfield versus Australia's three. The two Louis van Gaal selected, Nigel de Jong and Jonathan de Guzman, are hardly reliable ballplayers or registas in the face of pressure.

They spent the entire first half struggling to pass through the central zones, and the centre-backs would then opt to play a hopeful diagonal out to Daley Blind—which missed the mark more often than not.

Three vs. Three

Australia managed to organise a three vs. two overload in central midfield and a three vs. three up front.

The pressure in midfield made De Jong and De Guzman's central passing sloppy, and as many of their efforts were cut out by Australia's terriers high up, they were immediately given to Leckie and Oar to use in the final third.

Oar matched up square-on to Stefan de Vrij and Leckie the same to Bruno Martins Indi.

Whenever it was possible to take them on one vs. one, they would, and they'd usually make ground in the wide areas, with the wing-backs caught higher up due to the high turnovers they couldn't help; Martins Indi in particular looked very scruffy on the turn and in space.

Formation Change

Robben opened the scoring after 20 minutes, and it's no coincidence that it came in the first instance the winger was able to find space to surge into. McGowan was too tight, got rolled and the Bayern Munich man did the rest.

Before that, he hadn't had a sniff and Sneijder, either and got completely swamped out by Jedinak, McKay and Bresciano in midfield.

Van Gaal switched to a 4-3-3 formation at the break, bringing on Depay and placing him on the left wing at the expense of the injured Martins Indi.

The move placed more players closer to RvP in the final third, allowed Blind and Daryl Janmaat to face up to Australia's wingers and added an additional midfielder—Sneijder—to the centre of the pitch.

It worked a treat, as the Dutch began moving the ball more freely and creating overloads in the Socceroos' half. They enjoyed their first spell of sustained pressure and were able to commit between four and six men into the final third for each attack.

Conclusion

Australia manager Ange Postecoglu was able to construct a side who could effectively nullify the 3-5-2 formation but couldn't react to Van Gaal's 4-3-3 change.

That's not a total slight on him—moving to 4-3-3 took away the chance to overwhelm the Dutch in the middle and force abject play—and individual quality won out on the day.

"It's heartbreaking. The players deserved a reward today," Postecoglu told FIFA.com after the match. "Everyone was outstanding. For the majority of the game, we looked more likely to win than game than not."

Van Gaal just continues to make all the right moves, doesn't he?

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It may have been far closer than they would have liked, but the Netherlands' tough win over Australia shows that they are capable of going all the way in Brazil.

The Dutch scraped past the unfancied Aussies 3-2 in Porto Alegre, and will be feeling more relief than jubilation at securing six points in Group B.

The Socceroos led 2-1 in the second half, thanks to a brilliant Tim Cahill volley and a Mile Jedinak penalty, with Netherlands eventually getting over the line courtesy of strikes from Arjen Robben, Robin van Persie and Memphis Depay.

After their sensational display against Spain which saw them register an absolutely stunning 5-1 win, the Netherlands' performance against Australia shows that they can win "ugly" against less-fancied opponents as well.

Most teams that have gone on to win the World Cup have possessed such a characteristic: the ability to get a result without playing their best.

It is rare for a team to go through all seven matches needed to win football's ultimate prize producing only dazzling performances.

Poor games happen, and the ability to come up with a draw or a win despite struggling on the pitch is the sign of a legitimate World Cup contender.

The scare at the Estadio Beira-Rio could serve as the jolt the Netherlands needed after the elation of their Spanish demolition.

Though there was plenty to be concerned about against Australia, there are also a number of positives Louis van Gaal can take from the game.

The Socceroos are the lowest-ranked team in the tournament, and even though they put in a spirited showing against Chile in their opening game, they were not expected to trouble the Dutch.

The fact that they arguably outplayed the Netherlands for large portions of the match, using a style of passing football that the Dutch call their own, will be a major concern to Van Gaal.

His relatively inexperienced defence will also be a worry, as several slip-ups throughout ensured the Australians were always in the game.

Van Persie will miss the third group game after receiving his second yellow card of the competition early in the second half.

Looking on the bright side, the Netherlands do have six points from their two games and are almost certain to qualify for the knock-out stages.

Their big-name players are firing too. Van Persie and Robben are in scoring form, and Blind has emerged as a truly influential player on the left flank.

The ingredients are there for the Netherlands to be a contender in Brazil.

Sloppy displays like the one against Australia will be more harshly punished in the latter stages of the tournament, but Dutch fans will be hoping their side are now more sharply focused on the prize, and that they won't slip up again.

The second round of fixtures in Group B sees Australia and the Netherlands face each other in Porto Alegre on Wednesday, with the two sides having achieved contrasting results in their opening fixtures last week.

The Netherlands enjoyed a dream start, hammering Spain 5-1 in the tournament's most unexpected result so far. Conversely, Australia went down 3-1 to Chile in their opener—finding themselves behind 2-0 after just 14 minutes.

While Netherlands' defeat of Spain may not have been completely unexpected, the manner of it certainly was. Lest we forget, the last time the two sides had met was in the 2010 World Cup final when Spain emerged as victors, one of their three consecutive tournament victories.

Much of the focus following that match has been placed upon the possible demise of Spain. However, much credit must go to Louis van Gaal and his side, who attacked with clinical speed.

Where to start with that. Could have been different game if Silva took that chance, but Spain just couldn't handle it after equaliser...

— Miguel Delaney (@MiguelDelaney) June 13, 2014

The Dutchman changed his tactics to completely expose Spain's weaknesses—predominantly the space left behind their full-backs when caught high up the pitch. This was something in which Arjen Robben revelled.

Van Gaal went with Daryl Janmaat and Daley Blind as wing-backs, two battling midfielders in Nigel de Jong and Jonathan de Guzman, allowing Robben to combine with Wesley Sneijder and Robin van Persie on the counter-attack, and it worked perfectly.

The Dutch, all of a sudden, look like genuine contenders to lift the prize they came so close to collecting in South Africa four years ago.

For now, though, they must ensure their smooth passage from their group, and a victory against Australia will do that. It will also establish them as firm favourites to win Group B.

"You win the World Cup by winning the final," Van Gaal said ahead of the game with Australia. "This is just the first step. We have to keep our feet on the ground, we shouldn't get ahead of ourselves. We need to prove our capability to win over Australia, which won't be that easy."

Winning Group B means playing the runner-up in Group A in the last 16, thus avoiding the likely winners of Group A, host nation Brazil.

Holland will therefore be keen to ensure they remain focussed in order to top their group, avoid Brazil and probably consign Brazil and Spain to a tough last-16 match.

How Will Australia Approach the Match?

Australians may have been fearing a heavy defeat when they were two behind to Chile after just 14 minutes in their opener, but the Aussies battled back courtesy of Tim Cahill's excellent header and a very hard-working performance. In the end, 3-1 was a little harsh on the Socceroos.

Ange Postecoglou's side had a clear tactic to expose Chile's short defence with Cahill's aerial ability, but that tactic is unlikely to work as well against the Dutch. Centre-back Ron Vlaar was the proverbial colossus against Spain, while Stefan de Vrij is 6'2".

It's unlikely the Aussies' wide men will get the space to deliver to Cahill too, with the Dutch wing-backs protecting their three central defenders from wide areas.

It looks like a tough test for Australia, to say the least.

The Netherlands' Fire

The Netherlands played with pace, fire and energy against Spain, with Robben's run for his second goal of the game reportedly recorded at 23 mph, the fastest ever by a footballer (per the Daily Star).

Such pace against Australia will give the Socceroos serious problems. 

Van Gaal's side were out-passed by Spain (36 percent possession, per WhoScored.com) but had an impressive 14 shots on goal, of which 10 were on target—and five resulted in goals. Going 50 percent on shots on goal shows just how clinical the Dutch were.

Van Gaal looks to have found an in-form Van Persie and a hungry Robben; they're both 30 years old and perhaps know that this is their last chance to make their mark on a World Cup. Fire is in their belly.

Both of them, having picked up a double each against the Spaniards, will perhaps have an eye on the Golden Boot and will look to score often against Australia to establish themselves as candidates for the award.

Netherlands won't be suffering any hangover from the Spain win; Van Gaal will ensure as much. They have a side with experienced players who know the importance of securing another win against Australia.