It’s a repeat of the 2006 World Cup quarter final in Berlin, where the Germans came from behind to win on penalties

Get a free bet on Argentina v Germany at 888Sport- offering you £20 free no lost bet.  If you win you get paid out in full. If you lose you get your £20 back!  Already got a 888Sport account?  Try Betclic who are running the same offer!

Argentina’s 2010 World Cup campaign is following similar parallels to the one in Germany four years ago. In 2006, La Albiceleste breezed through qualifying, beat Mexico in the last sixteen and then faced Die Mannschaft in the quarter finals where spot kicks sent the tournament favourites crashing out of the competition.

This time around, Germany don’t have home advantage and the bookies make them the outsiders (12/5 Ladbrokes) to follow up Sunday’s impressive win over England with another victory in normal time. Joachim Loew’s team will be full of confidence after that 4-1 triumph and you can get odds of 13/10 (bet365) that this young team go through.

It is possible that Argentina are once again being overrated by the bookmakers, or perhaps it’s just a case of firms incurring big liabilities due to punters getting sucked into the whole Lionel Messi & Diego Maradona love-in that the media are enjoying. Even so, the south Americans are 4/6 (William Hill) to go through to the semi-finals and a 13/10 chance (bet365) to win in ninety minutes.

Although they beat Mexico comfortably enough on Sunday night, there was more than a little fortune about the way that Argentina got their noses in front. After the Mexicans had enjoyed a bright start to the game, Carlos Tevez scored from a clear offside position and it rattle Javier Aguirre’s team to the extent that they made a fatal error which saw their opponents double the lead.

Even so, the trio of Tevez, Messi and Gonzalo Higuain are proving to be highly effective and it’s the latter who is top of the scoring charts after scoring his fourth of the World Cup finals against Mexico. The Real Madrid forward is 5/1 (Sky Bet) to set his team on their way in Cape Town and it’s clear that the biggest German weakness is in defence, with Per Mertesacker and Manuel Neuer looking hesitant against England.

However, there’s so much to like about this Germany team when they have possession. Joachim Loew’s team moved the ball at real speed on Sunday afternoon and it was something that England simply couldn’t cope with. Thomas Muller (12/1 Paddy Power) had an excellent game and Mesut Ozil (16/1 Sky Bet) must surely be in the reckoning for player of the tournament right now.

Never mind this talk of Germany being a young team – fresh legs and a brilliant team spirit has helped them reach the quarter finals and they will take some beating.