Netherlands v Argentina: 4 World Cup classics

Lionel Messi's bid for a first World Cup continues on Friday when Argentina take on the Netherlands in a hotly anticipated quarter-final in Qatar which is also a replay of some classic matches.

AFP Sports looks at four World Cup clashes between Argentina and the Netherlands:

1974: Cruyff and Co. put on a show

Argentina could do nothing to stop a wave of Total Football that came at them from the first whistle and didn't let up until the very end, when even a 4-0 scoreline was less than the dominant Dutch deserved.

Johan Cruyff was at the peak of his powers and both opened and closed the scoring in a magical team display which highlighted the cutting-edge tactics that would go on to influence football for decades to come.

The Netherlands helped knock out Argentina in the second group stage and advance to the final, where the new gods of the game were brought down to earth by Gerd Muller and hosts West Germany.

1978: Dutch fail again as junta celebrates

Missing Cruyff, who was subjected to a kidnapping attempt before the tournament, the Netherlands lost their second straight final against a host nation. This time it was to Argentina at a World Cup used by the country's military junta to boost its image.

Allegations of match-fixing and political pressure favouring Argentina flew throughout the tournament but a tense, at-times violent contest would have been settled in the Netherlands' favour had Rob Rensenbrink's last-minute shot not crashed out off the post. 

Argentina claimed their first World Cup in extra-time thanks to their star man Mario Kempes, who had opened the scoring in normal time and put the hosts back in front to take his tournament tally to six, sending his team to a 3-1 win.

1998: Bergkamp magic settles classic

Dennis