The Netherlands and Argentina, the two football giants advanced into the knockout stage of the World Cup after a scoreless draw, together with Portugal and Mexico, while Cote d'Ivoire, Angola, Iran, and Serbia and Montenegro were eliminated with pride on Wednesday.

There were glimpses of brilliance from both sides but the Netherlands and Argentina seemed content to see the match out for the draw, having already qualified for the last 16 after winning their opening two games in the group.

With the last attack of the night, Carlos Tevez got the best chance for Argentina in the injury time when he stabbed the ball to the goal after a group of dazzling steps past the Dutch defense, but it missed the target.

"We didn't play the kind of football that we like to play, but we were facing a very strong team," Argentina coach Perkman said.

Dominating the midfield from the very beginning, the Argentines seemingly found their scintillating form in a 6-0 win over Serbia and Montenegro last Friday.

Argentina almost broke the tie in the 29th minute when Maxi Rodriguez hit the ball into the goal from Riquelme's corner. It shaved the post and all he could do is put his head in his hands in exasperation.

The Netherlands showed their skill in the 16th minute when Dirk Kuyt slammed towards the target with a belting strike, but only to witness the ball being denied by a fantastic saving from Argentina goalkeeper Abondanzieri Roberto.

Phillip Cocu has a shot after Rafael van der Vaart took a tumble under the advances of Fabricio Coloccini in the Argentine penalty area in the 66th minute, but it missed the target.

"I'm not satisfied, we wanted to win the group but I think Argentina made it difficult for us," goalkeeper van der Sar said.

Even at the last moment, the Netherlands did not give up their desire of attacking when van der Vart crossed hoping for a last-ditch goal.

"In the second half we became a bit more dominant. Our organization was good and, if we can bring a bit more footballing quality, it may be time for us to start winning," Dutch coach Marco van Basten said.

Knowing they had been already eliminated from the tournament, the four teams fought for nothing, but their pride tonight.

Striker Aruna Dindane scored two and Bonaventure Kalou added the winner as Cote d'Ivoire fought back from two goals down to beat Serbia and Montenegro 3-2, while World Cup debutants Angola were held a 1-1 tie by Iran in their last Group D match in Leipzig.

Cote d'Ivoire's strike Dindane, who plays with French side Lens, had already pulled 2-1 through a penalty kick in the 35th minute after the European rivals took a 2-0 lead early in the first half.

Midfielder Kader Keita stabbed a cross into the area and Dindane, 26, headed in the equalizer. He darted to the corner flag to celebrate scoring his second goal.

Dindane should have scored the World Cup's first hat-trick in the 86th minute, when the African side earned a second penalty kick as Arthur Boka's corner and his volley was blocked by the hand of Milan Dudic -- the man who gave away the penalty for the first goal.

The match was played in heavy rain and Cote d'Ivoire, who lost their first two games by identical scores of 2-1, took control but it was their European rivals who scored the first.

Iran's coach Branko Ivankovic from Croatia was disappointed not to win. He insisted his players deserved to exit the World Cup with a victory.

"The conditions were very hard but the players put their heart and soul into the match."
Nikola Zigic scored Serbia and Montenegro's first goal at the World Cup, running off the back off Blaise Kouassi and brought down Dejan Stankovic's long pass from halfway before easily slotting home after goalkeeper Boubacar Barry went walkabout.

The African Elephants made it 2-1 in the 35th minute, when Dudic handled the ball with his hand well above his head punching Boka's cross.

Despite the elimination, Angola, one of the weakest teams viewed by experts at the tournament, stunned the world by earning a goalless tie with soccer giants Mexico after losing to powerhouse Portugal 1-0. They won respect from the fans around the world.

Iran also showed their great skills on the World Cup pitch, playing attacking football with Mexico and Portugal and even dominating the matches for quite some time. Despite the two losses, no one could look down upon such an Asian team.

In today's Angola-Iran clash, the two goals all came in the second half.

Angola had their goal in the 60th minute. A right-wing cross from Figueiredo found substitute Flavio alone at the far post, and Flavio placed his header beyond the reach of keeper Ebrahim Mirzapour.

Angola coach Luis Oliviera Goncalves said after the match that his players had made him proud despite bowing out of the World Cup.

And Goncalves said: "We were not intelligent enough to defend our 1-0 lead but I'm still proud of my players."

"Everyone involved in Angolan football and the people at home can be very proud of the players."

This was the first goal scored by Angola in the 2006 World Cup in Germany. The Iranians got the equalizer in the 75th when defender Sohrab Bakhtiarizadeh headed home a corner.

In the previous game, Mexico booked their place in the knockout stage though having paid the price for doing silly things on the pitch and lost their third and last round robin match 2-1 to Group D leaders Portugal in Gelsenkirchen.

Maniche and Simao Sabrosa scored for Portugal in the first 25 minutes of Wednesday's match, before Kikin headed in a 29th-minute corner for Mexico.

"We started very well," Mexico coach Ricardo Lavolpe said. "We had control for long periods but when you have the ball you have to score, and we even missed a penalty."

"I believe our main problem is scoring," he added. "We had a penalty and didn't get it in. We have the forwards we need, we get to the opposing goalkeeper but we must put away our chances.

The Mexicans, who had 4 points from previous two clashes after beating Iran 3-1 and drawing Angola 0-0, still advance to the knockout round after finishing second in the group ahead of Angola, who were tied 1-1 by Iran after leading for most of their match simultaneously in Leipzig and earned a second point from the draw.

Portugal have been guaranteed a berth to next round even before Wednesday's match with two previous wins, and the 2-1 victory over Mexico completed a perfect first-round run for them.

"Things couldn't be better," Portugal coach Scolari said. "This was as tough a game as we had expected, but I asked my players today to make it hard for me to pick my team for the next round, and they did that."

By topping the Group D on 9 points, Luiz Felipe Scolari's side will be spared one day for rest and next take the runners-up of Group C, the Netherlands as Argentina lead the Dutch on goal differences after their scoreless draw on Wednesday.

The 2002 World Cup winning coach with Brazil had rested all his five booked players to avoid a possible ruling out for the knockout round, while Mexico started with six defenders. The absentees are playmaker Deco and Costinha, winger Cristiano Ronaldo, all-time top scorer Pauleta and defender Nuno Valente.

(Xinhua News Agency June 22, 2006)