Packed press room in Doha's gigantic convention center to hear reflections from Louis van Gaal and Memphis Depay ahead of today's quarter-final between the Netherlands and Argentina. Many Dutch journalists are involved. In the first shift that goes to stop an Argentine colleague the question brings them. It doesn't really contain any questions. "Ángel di María says of you that he has been the worst coach he has had in his career." Barcelona's irascible Van Gaal would have caused an immediate body to the ground.
The 71-year-old Van Gaal of today is a man who controls his emotions and anger and transforms them, through a conciliatory tone, into good humour. He's glad to hear you. “Di María, he is a good footballer. When he was at Manchester he had personal problems, they broke into his house and that affected his performance ”, reasoned the former FC Barcelona coach. "He is one of the few players who has said this about me, it usually happens the other way around, it's a bit sad, a pity," he continued. And there came the humorous turn of Van Gaal, who took advantage of the fact of having Memphis Depay to his left. He looked at him and remembered that the striker also hated him in his day, during his time at United, because he barely lined up for him: “Maybe it was a wrong decision, but look how we treat each other now. We kissed on the mouth... it's a pity he won't let me kiss him”. Memphis didn't know where to go, though he opted for a final laugh. Then he got serious. “What does Van Gaal bring to our team? The impact of it is very high and it can be verified by looking at our results. Since he's here we haven't lost yet. Our discipline is very strict, a very important factor when you play a short tournament like a World Cup, and we are versatile: we can play and win using different styles. Our technician communicates things to us very clearly”. Van Gaal, who defined himself as "more patient than in the past", had words of support for Luis Enrique on the day he said goodbye as the Spanish coach: "I don't know him as a coach because I haven't been to his training sessions, but as a player he was always a great professional. It's a shame for him."
The Netherlands and Argentina have seen each other in a World Cup up to five times. The most important were lost by the European team. The 1978 final (3-1, after an extension) and the 2014 semifinals (0-0 and penalty shootout). A young Memphis was at that appointment. "I want to remove that thorn," he conceded. Van Gaal said that "the tournament really starts now for us."
On the Argentine side, Lionel Scaloni, his coach, has not been in as good a mood as Van Gaal in the hours leading up to the vital game. He got angry with the Argentine press for reporting that Rodrigo de Paul is a doubt due to hamstring problems; he believes that, after training behind closed doors, favors the Dutch. Di María continues between cottons. But in Argentina the legs that really matter are Messi's. And those are still fine.
