Netherlands and Chile met in Sao Paolo this afternoon knowing that the winner would top Group B and avoid a likely last-16 match against World Cup hosts Brazil.
Chile have impressed in the tournament thus far, and enjoyed the better of the opening 45 minutes, as Felipe Gutierrez missed a couple of decent chances.
Dutch manager Louis van Gaal's second-half substitutions worked a treat as Leroy Fer, brought on to exploit the South Americans' lack of height, headed Holland into a 77th-minute lead from Daryl Janmaat's cross.
Another man introduced off the bench, the emerging Memphis Depay, secured the result for Netherlands in stoppage time following a counter-attack goal that was created by Arjen Robben.
Below, you can read how the action unfolded, courtesy of SM's live coverage.
Afternoon, all. Who would have thought that holders Spain would already be out of the qualification picture going into Group B's final round of fixtures, which sees Netherlands and Chile, both of whom have already progressed to the knockout stages of the World Cup, clash in Sao Paolo.
There is still great motivation for sides to win the game, though, with the side which collects maximum points guaranteed to top Group B and likely to avoid a last-16 meeting with hosts Brazil.
A draw would also be enough for Netherlands to ensure top spot, and while Brazil have underwhelmed in their first two games, a tie against either Croatia or Mexico would still be preferable.
Victory over already-eliminated Cameroon tonight would see the Selecao wrap up first place in Group A. Sports Mole will have live coverage of that match, and a virtual second-place playoff between Croatia and Mexico, later on this evening, but first it is the final chapter of Group B.
You can follow live text commentary of Spain vs. Australia, here, but I am focusing on matters at the Group B summit, where something has got to give between the 100% records of Chile and Holland.
Team news from Sao Paolo will be with you imminently, with Netherlands forced into changes...
NETHERLANDS: Cillessen; Janmaat, Vlaar, De Vrij, Blind; De Jong, Wijnaldum, Sneijder; Robben, Kuyt, Lens
SUBS: Vorm, Krul, Verhaegh, Kongolo, Depay, Veltman, Clasie, De Guzman, Fer, Huntelaar
CHILE: Bravo; Isla, Medel, Jara, Mena; Gutierrez, Aranguiz, Diaz, Silva; Sanchez, Vargas
SUBS: Toselli, Herrera, Albornoz, Rojas, Carmona, Orellana, Beausejour, Vidal, Valdivia, Fuenzalida, Paredes, Pinilla
Three changes for Netherlands, with the suspended Robin van Persie, injured Bruno Martins Indi and Jonathan de Guzman replaced by Georginio Wijnaldum, Dirk Kuyt and Jeremain Lens.
Van Persie picked up a second booking of the tournament in the thrilling 3-2 win over Australia, while central defender Martins Indi stretched off in the same match and not risked this afternoon.
Lens will take the place of Van Persie in Louis van Gaal's three-man attack, with former Liverpool star Kuyt and stand-in captain Arjen Robben providing the width for the tournament's top scorers.
Wesley Sneijder will be asked to drop into central midfield alongside Wijnaldum. Although Nigel de Jong will act as the anchorman, this is still a very attacking lineup named by future Manchester United manager Van Gaal, with no signs that he will settle for the point that they need.
The Chileans make just the one alteration from the team that shocked Spain, with Juventus star Arturo Vidal rested, having been a pre-tournament injury doubt, and also carrying a yellow card.
Felipe Gutierrez will come into the middle of the park as the South Americans continue with their fluid 3-5-2 formation, with tireless pairing Mauricio Isla and Eugenio Mena at full-backs.
Around 20 minutes until kickoff now, but it wouldn't be like that if Van Gaal had his way. He has been moaning that FIFA's scheduling of the games favours those teams in Group A, including Brazil.
He told reporters this week: "Fifa plays these tricks. It's not a good thing," said Van Gaal. "It's not fair play. I think at a World Cup the host country always has an advantage.
"If I were allowed to choose, I'd rather not play against Brazil, although Croatia or Mexico aren't bad opponents either."
Chile were viewed as potential dark horses prior to the World Cup, and their triumph over Spain has seen more people jump on this bandwagon. SkyBet make them 20/1 sixth favourites now.
They dispelled some of those feelings that they are very open at the back by shutting out Spain. It is their incessant energy, both in attack and defence, which has been their most impressive trait thus far, though. Today's match may indicate whether they are genuine World Cup hopefuls.
The Dutch, meanwhile, were largely unfancied prior to their thrashing of the Spaniards, but with Robben, the outstanding player of the tournament thus far, in full swing, that is quickly changing.
REFEREE WATCH: Gambian official Bakary Gassama and his team are in charge this afternoon.
ONE TO WATCH: Outside of star names such as Alexis Sanchez and Robben, look out for Chile's flying full-back Isla on the right wing. He is not a regular at Juventus and both Arsenal and Liverpool are believed to be tracking him following his impressive performances in Brazil.
PREDICTION: This should be good. Robben has been seen really getting his teammates pumped up in the tunnel so it appears that the Dutch are going to be at full throttle, no half measures with a draw in the back of their mind. Chile have passed every test that they have had so far, though, and I am backing them to edge this one by a 2-1 scoreline. Here come the national anthems...
PREDICTION: This should be good. Robben has been seen really getting his teammates pumped up in the tunnel so it appears that the Dutch are going to be at full throttle, no half measures with a draw in the back of their mind. Chile have passed every test that they have had so far, though, and I am backing them to edge this one by a 2-1 scoreline. Here come the national anthems...
KICKOFF: Chile get us underway, and for the first time this tournament, Netherlands are wearing their famous orange colours. The South Americans are in their alternative white jerseys.
Sanchez has picked up the ball a couple of times and looked lively already. De Jong tackles him on the halfway line, before a dinked through ball towards Isla is headed away by the retreating Kuyt.
Lovely turn from Sanchez in the middle of the Dutch half to get away from Vlaar, and he tries to release Gutierrez through the gap that the Aston Villa man left behind, but De Vrij just about intercepts.
Lens catches Francisco Silva in the latest of several early collisions. Gary Medel has already made the most of a couple of fouls. I thought he was nicknamed 'Pitbull' because he was tough, not because he spends a lot of time on all fours. It has been all Chile in possession thus far.
Mena nutmegs Janmaat on the Holland right, and Chile soon cross towards the penalty spot, where Vargas engineers a header from a difficult position, but cannot keep it down.
Jara has joined in with an attack from defence and he picks out a lovely pass into the left channel for Aranguiz, who tries to square for Vargas, only for Vlaar to intercept and hook into the stands.
Robben chases down a Vlaar punt forward, but Medel shields the ball behind, and the Cardiff City midfielder follows that up with an important tackle on Lens after being left on-one-one.
Mena gets forward down the left once more and drills a cross back towards the 18-yard line. Aragnuiz cleverly dummies for Sanchez, who just loses his footing as he turns to try and gather.
A smart free-kick routine nearly sets Mena clear inside the left edge box, with the full-back making a very late run to latch onto Silva's delivery from the right byline, with the rest of the players preoccupied in the middle, only to miscontrol and have to settle for a corner as he knocks it off De Vrij.
CHANCE! Another training-ground routine from the Chileans provides us with our best chance of the game so far, as Aranguiz rolls a corner towards the penalty spot for Gutierrez to wrap his left foot around, but the recalled midfielder's effort flies a good 10 yards over the crossbar.
Robben has the chance to run at the Chilean defence for the first time, and they retreat into the box before the Dutchman tries to curl a left-footed effort around one of several surrounded white jerseys. Jara makes the block, and when the rebound falls to Wijnaldum, he slices horribly wide.
BOOKING: Silva is the first man into the Gambian referee's book, slightly harshly, for a pull of Lens' shirt. From the free-kick Sneijder whips a shot over the wall, but right into Bravo's arms.
The Dutch are starting to have some more of the ball in the middle of the park, having had to watch Chile pass it around for much of the opening 15 minutes. It's a bit scrappy, though, as the relentless Chilean press is preventing Holland from having any time on the ball and they keep giving it away.
PENALTY APPEAL! Vidal leads the shouts for a penalty off the Chilean bench, after Blind flies in on Aranguiz. With Janmaat again outnumbered on the left, Diaz delivered and Blind came across quickly, just catching Aranguiz, but the referee was happy enough with the challenge.
Two chances to break away are squandered by the Dutch through poor passing. De Jong does really well to nick the ball inside the Chilean half, but his reverse pass is behind the AC Milan man. Moments later, Robben has the chance to play in Lens, but Silva is well positioned to intercept.
CHANCE! Holland come close as Robben whips in a delightful, pacey free kick for De Vrij to attack at the back post, but he just glances wide from six yards out. The defender, who scored his first international goal against Spain, got above Silva but was on the stretch and could not control his header.
The Chilean bench are out of their seats on the sidelines again, demanding a penalty, but Sanchez had gone down softly under light contact from Kuyt as he tried to meet Mena's cross. That is indicative of Kuyt's work so far - it has all been going backwards. He's practically playing as a wing-back.
CLOSE! So nearly another spectacular goal from Robben, who spins quickly on the halfway line to brush off a couple of Chile midfielders, and there is no catching him. He travels at speed to the edge of the box, where a clever run from Lens takes a defender away and opens up space for him to continue his run into the area. The Bayern Munich winger skips past Medel with ease and then tries to drag a shot back into the bottom left corner, but Bravo watches as the ball rolls a couple of yards wide.
LATEST: We have a Group A goal this afternoon, and it is Spain who are ahead against Australia, with David Villa the man on the scoresheet. They will be keen to avoid further embarrassment.
Lens pinches the ball from Gutierrez just inside the Chile half and has the chance to use his pace and run at Medel. The 'Pitbull' forces him away from goal and the PSV Eindhoven striker lashes high and wide from 25 yards, when he really should have driven full speed into the area.
CHANCE! Gutierrez makes an unchecked run through the middle to get on the end of Diaz's set piece, and his header on the turn goes just wide. He was in plenty of space, but was not quite able to adjust his body to direct his header goalwards. Poor defending from Holland, though.
A Dutch free kick is cleared to Lens, who fires in a shot from the edge of the box which is blocked. Robben nearly swoops in to get onto the rebound, only for Medel to hoof away from danger.
HALF-TIME: NETHERLANDS 0-0 CHILE
A fascinating first half, in which Chile show again that they can hang with the best of them. The South Americans have been the better side, and only a goal is missing from another assured display.
They have twice come close to an opening goal, with Felipe Gutierrez heading wide after previously shooting over the crossbar from 15 yards. Both chances came following set pieces, which is not something that I would have predicted considering the stature of Chile's XI.
Netherlands have had a couple of opportunities of their own, with Arjen Robben again the man main. He nearly finished off a 50-yard run with an opening goal for the Dutch, but dragged just wide. Elsewhere, he crossed for Stefan de Vrij to glance marginally off target at the back post.
STATS: Chile have had a massive 73% possession, thanks to a bright start which stifled Holland's pre-match energy. Surprisingly, there is yet to be a shot on target, with Chile failing to test Jasper Cillessen with any of their seven efforts. As is stands, the Dutch would top Group B.
KICKOFF: The action is back underway in Sao Paolo, and Chile have made a change...
SUBSTITUTION: Wigan Athletic wide man Jean Beausejour is on in place of Gutierrez, who had those two chances in the opening 45 minutes. Beausejour scored off the bench against Australia.
The Dutch begin the second period brightly, as Kuyt knocks in a couple of crosses from deep which Medel is forced to defend in the air under pressure from both Robben and Wijnaldum.
Sanchez pops up on the right and shows a great turn of pace to spin away from Blind and charge down the wing. He gets overexcited, though, and knocks it too far in front of him, allowing Vlaar to tackle.
Nice buildup from the Dutch as Kuyt and Sneijder exchange passes before the latter finds the feet of Lens. He holds off Medel and tries to work the ball around the corner for Kuyt, who is probably in the Chile box for the first time, but Jara is in the right place to get his body in the way.
Sanchez has a pretty free role in behind the so-far quiet Vargas, and he comes deep to collect the ball from Aranguiz and try his luck from distance, but his 30-yard strike swerves over the crossbar.
Mena's fancy footwork helps him wriggle free of Janmaat, who has struggled this afternoon, often in two-on-one situations. The full-back crosses, but the box is empty and Cillessen claims unchallenged.
Lens buys a free kick from the referee, and Robben, who is more associated with such playacting, whips the ball in from the right. It is cleared to Sneijder, whose 25-yard rocket is blocked bravely.
BOOKING: The referee decides that he has to take action following the persistent fouling, showing a yellow card to Blind for his late slide tackle on Sanchez, who had correctly been denied a penalty by the Gambian official moments earlier, with Cillessen getting a hand to the ball when coming off his line.
SHOT! Delightful stuff from Sanchez, who superbly nutmegs Lens by the left byline after a Diaz free kick from the right had been overhit. He takes the shot on from a tight angle, but Cillessen ensures that it does not sneak in at his near post and blocks strongly with his fists.
Both managers appear to be preparing changes. I wondered how long it would take Chile boss Jorge Sampaoli to start chasing the game, knowing that Brazil probably lie in wait as it stands.
SUBSTITUTIONS: Holland first, with Lens making way for Memphis Depay, who scored the winner as a substitute against Australia and has another chance to make his mark. Sampaoli sacrifices defender Silva for playmaker Jorge Valdivia, who has also netted against the Socceroos this tournament.
So Sampaoli turns to Valdivia, but will he risk the fitness, or possible suspension, of Vidal in order to go for the win? There is less than 20 minutes left now, and Chile's record against Brazil is poor.
LATEST: Spain are heading home early, but the champions are not leaving Brazil with the Group B wooden spoon. They lead Australia 2-0 now thanks to Chelsea forward Fernando Torres.
With Silva, one of Chile's tallest players, having been taken off, Netherlands will fancy their chances from set pieces even more, and twice they cause the Chileans problems. Sneijder's ball forced Vargas to head behind on the backpedal, while Kuyt nods the resultant Robben corner over.
SAVE! Depay is being tipped as a star of the future, and he shows us why here, by skipping away from Medel and unleashing a 25-yard piledriver which Bravo leaps to tip over his crossbar.
GOAL! NETHERLANDS 1-0 CHILE (LEROY FER)
With one of his first touches of the ball, recently-introcuded substitute Leroy Fer puts Netherlands ahead with only 13 minutes remaining! A corner is taken short and Janmaat delivers a gorgeous cross to the back post, and nobody knows who should be picking up Fer, who has only been on the pitch for a minute or so. The Norwich City midfielder is unmarked and powers a header right into the bottom corner. Very good finish from Fer, who may just have secured the Dutch top spot in Group B.
Chile now have to score twice in the final 10 minutes to finish as Group B winners, and it does not seem as if the ball will break for them as a Valdivia flick on for a corner strikes De Vrij on the line, after taking a deflection off De Jong. Shouts of handball from the Chileans, but definitely unintentional.
SUBSTITUTION: Chile swap Vargas for Mauricio Pinilla, who is more of the target man build. This gives the South Americans the option of lumping it long as well as working through the middle.
Isla, who has been quiet second period, takes on a long shot which strikes the offside Sanchez before it may have tested Cillessen. The flag is raised as Pinilla tries to gather the loose ball.
LATEST: Spain have a third in Parana, where Juan Mata has added to Torres and Villa strikes.
Great tackle from De Jong as Sanchez approached the six-yard box of a congested area. Kuyt was clipping at the Chilean's heels and may have made contact before De Jong's perfectly-timed slide.
SUBSTITUTION: The hard-working Kuyt is replaced by Terence Kongolo for the final few minutes. The 20-year-old Feyenoord midfielder is making just his second international appearance.
We will have THREE minutes of added time. Chile are applying some pressure and winning plenty of corners, but they are not likely to be fruitful considering the size differences of the respective sides.
GOAL! NETHERLANDS 2-0 CHILE (MEMPHIS DEPAY)
A rapid counter-attack goal from the Dutch seals them the win and top spot in Group B! De Jong releases Robben, who cannot be caught by the desperately retreating Chile defenders. He charges down the left channel and into the box, and Depay, probably the only teammate who can keep up with Robben, surges 60 yards to get up alongside him and tap in at the back post for his second World Cup goal.
FULL-TIME: NETHERLANDS 2-0 CHILE
Holland make it three wins from three, and are emerging as the form side of the tournament, having barely been mentioned in pre-World Cup conversations. Goals from substitutes Leroy Fer and Memphis Depay in the final 13 minutes secured them a 2-0 win over Chile, and top spot in Group B.
Louis van Gaal's side will now likely avoid Brazil in the last 16, assuming that the Selecao beat Cameroon later this evening and end up with a better goal difference than Mexico. Spain, who beat Australia 3-0 in today's other 5.00pm kickoff, finish third, with the unfortunate Socceroos bottom.
That's it from me. Thanks for joining Sports Mole this afternoon and be sure to join us again this evening for live coverage of Brazil vs. Cameroon, and Croatia vs. Mexico. Until then...
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