Argentina v Belgium: Red Devils aim to nullify Messi
Superstar is only one of 'Fantastic Four' to fire for South Americans, who face litmus test against Marc Wilmots' talented line-up of young guns
Argentina will once again turn to Lionel Messi for inspiration when they tackle star-studded Belgium in Brasilia on Saturday in a quarter-final haunted by ghosts of yesteryear.
Victory will take Argentina into the last four - where either the Netherlands or Costa Rica will await - for only the second time since they last won the tournament in 1986, beating Belgium in the semi-finals en route.
But despite results living up to expectations - Argentina have won all four of their games to date - performances have not, and the team's dependence on Messi has been cited as the key factor.
Eden might be picked out by the international press as the star of the squad, but what I see is that Belgium are a block who don't depend on the performances of a single player
With four goals in three matches, the Barcelona megastar was his side's saviour in the group phase, while in the 1-0 extra-time victory over Switzerland in the last 16 he seemed the only player capable of making a difference.
Diego Maradona was scathing of the team's performance, warning coach Alejandro Sabella that he is destined for "catastrophe" if he cannot alleviate some of the burden on the team's outstanding player.
Argentina's assault on the World Cup was supposed to be spearheaded by their "Fantastic Four" attackers, but Messi is the only one who has lived up to his billing.
Sergio Aguero is a serious doubt due to a muscle injury, Gonzalo Higuain is waiting for his first goal, and despite scoring the winner against the Swiss, Angel Di Maria has delighted and exasperated in equal measure.
Facing accusations that his side are overly reliant on their No 10, Sabella said: "Argentina have always had a dependence on Messi."