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 The match will be a repeat of the 1986 and 1990 World Cup finals,
the first of which was won by Argentina before the then West Germany
gained revenge four years later.
Argentina's win compounded the misery for hosts Brazil who were
humiliated 7-1 by Germany on Tuesday before seeing their worst fears
realized when their South American neighbors booked their place at
the Maracana on Sunday.
Midfielder Maxi Rodriguez scored the decisive penalty for Argentina
after their goalkeeper Sergio Romero had saved spot kicks from Ron
Vlaar and Wesley Sneijder, triggering wild celebrations among Lionel
Messi's triumphant team.
"I'm proud to be a part of this group," Messi said in a statement
posted on his social media pages.
"They are all phenomenons, what a match they played.
"What madness. We are in the final. Let's enyoy it, it is just a
little step more."
Brazil may have won the World Cup more than any other country, but
the one they wanted most of all will now be played between two of
their greatest rivals.
For Brazilians, it is unpalatable prospect for the mourning samba
nation but for soccer fans, it is a dream showdown between a German
team that has wowed everyone at the tournament and Messi, the
four-time World Player of the year who has won every honor except
the World Cup.
Wednesday's second semi-final in Sao Paulo could not have been more
different than Tuesday's goalfest in Belo Horizonte but the sheer
tension of the occasion had fans on the edge of their seats.
"I'm very happy because we reached the final and now we will see
what we can do," said Argentina coach Alejandro Sabella. "We will
give everything as usual, with humility, work and 100 percent
effort."
Neither Argentina or the Netherlands created many chances in a dour
game that was dominated by defense but ultimately came down to a
battle of nerves when they finished deadlocked at 0-0 after extra
time.
For players and fans, the tension was almost unbearable and it was
the Dutch, who have played in three World Cup finals, including the
last one in Johannesburg four years ago, but never won one, who
fluffed their lines in the shootout.
It was also a second semi-final defeat on penalties for the
Netherlands who suffered the same fate against Brazil in 1998.
"I didn't have the feeling in the second half that we would lose,"
said Netherlands manager Louis van Gaal.
"And when it comes to penalties you know it's a lottery. The boys
did fantastically (well). Nobody had expected this."
The Dutch will play Brazil in the third-place playoff in Brasilia on
Saturday as the recriminations into the host nation's limp exit
gather pace.
ETERNAL SHAME
Brazilian media savaged the team's performance with newspapers
describing the Germany defeat as an "historic disgrace", "national
humiliation", "eternal shame" and a "fiasco".
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A lot of the blame was directed at Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari,
whose future is now the source of wide speculation with Tite, Muricy
Ramalho and Vanderlei Luxemburgo looming as his possible successor.
Brazil President Dilma Rousseff took to social media to express her
disappointment to a country reeling from the loss after spending
more than $11 billion on hosting the tournament.
"I'm immensely sorry for all of us, our fans and players," she
tweeted. "But let's not let ourselves give up. Brazil, get up, dust
yourself off and bounce back."
Riot police, who had been deployed at fan sites around the country
to handle any violent outbreaks, had a quiet night with most fans
too traumatized by the manner of defeat to revolt.
An Argentine journalist was killed in Sao Paulo early on Wednesday
morning when his taxi was hit by a stolen car fleeing police. He was
the second Argentine reporter to die in a car wreck while covering
the World Cup.
The mood in Germany could not have been more different with more
than 32 million people watching their country's victory on
television, a record rating which accounted for an audience market
share of almost 88 percent.
Hundreds of thousands of Germans watched the match from the avenue
leading to the Brandenburg Gate and German Chancellor Angela Merkel
is expected to attend the final.
Off the field, FIFA suspended the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF)
because of government interference.
A regional court in Nigeria last week ordered the sacking of the
existing NFF executive after the team's performance at the World
Cup, where they were eliminated by France in the second round.
The court appointed a new administrator to run the game in the
populous west African nation but FIFA warned Nigeria they would be
banned from competing internationally unless the old leadership was
restored to power.
"The suspension will be lifted once the court actions have been
withdrawn and the properly elected NFF Executive Committee, the NFF
general assembly and the NFF administration are able to work without
any interference in their affairs," FIFA said.
(Editing by Ed Osmond and Nigel Hunt)
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