Jinxed the match again! + Russia v Holland

My two quarterfinal predictions so far were either completely wrong or had the unholy effect of jinxing the match, resulting for a win over my predicted winners! Nevertheless, I shall continue soldiering on with my predictions! By the way, what a way for Turkey to win! I'm glad I was awake for the match. The moment Turkey scored that equaliser I was absolutely certain that they would win the shoot-out and I'm pretty sure most of you thought so as well. That last minute goal was like a rip through the Croatian players' guts and I just didn't see them being able to go through a shoot-out...

Russia v Holland

Let me just say right now, Holland are the clear favourites, but I admit I'm a Russian mini-fan, mostly due to my admiration of Guus Hiddink (pic) after he brought Australa to the elimination rounds of the World Cup. It'd also be a dream to see a Russian-Spanish rematch in the semis.

As has been promoted by the media shamelessly, both Russia and Holland are two very offensive-minded teams. But at the end of the day, despite their winning performances, it's very obvious that the Dutch are fragile at the back. How the Italians didn't manage to score is beyond me.  Russia, on the other hand, have had the benefit of experiencing their backline torn apart by Spain, and as a result have put in the discipline needed to produce two strong defensive performances thereafter. The Dutch haven't had that experience and one has to wonder whether that naivety might cost them.

What the Dutch do have over the Russians right now though is their experience in such tournaments, and for me, that's going to bring them through to the semifinals. Honestly, I want Russia to win, but I don't see that happening.

2-2 at 90 minutes, and a matchwinning goal for the Dutch in extra time (probably by that darn Nistelrooy again!)