Then there were four

Hosts Brazil appear on course to meet expectations and go all the way to win the 2014 World Cup on home soil.

Brazil edged out South American rivals Colombia 2-1 to reach the semi-finals, but three-times champions Germany, who beat France in the quarters, will ensure they have one of the toughest possible routes to get there.

Argentina only beat Belgium by a solitary goal, while Holland needed a dramatic penalty shootout to see off the tournaments surprise package Costa Rica.

Remarkably, it will be the first time in World Cup history that both Brazil and Argentina have reached the semi-finals. I was amazed by that statistic and couldn't believe it had taken this long for two great nations to reach this stage together. However, they would have reached the feat in 1978 had the format of the tournament not been different. The South American duo were in the same second round group, with Argentina topping the pile and Brazil finishing as runners-up in Group B. Argentina progressed straight to the final, where they beat Holland, while Brazil had to settle for finishing third after winning their play-off match with Italy. Had there been semi-finals the duo would both have reached that stage but 2014 will be the first time they are both officially in the semi-finals together.

Equally as surprising it will be the first time in almost 25 years that Argentina have reached the final four and it is shaping up to be a superb climax to the competition. Back in the group stages it was all about expecting the unexpected and underdogs punching well above their weight, with plenty of goals, to delight football fans across the globe. But as the tournament reached its business end the favourites shone through despite some mammoth efforts from the smaller sides. All eight group winners won in the round of 16 and the four favourites won their quarter-final matches, although they were all made to work extremely hard to get the right result.

There is so much more that could be said but, before I get side-tracked, let's look back at the action from the quarter-finals.

Mat's the way to do it!
France 0 Germany 1
Germany may not have peaked at their best this tournament but they don't half know how to get results when it counts! Despite not being at their best, the Germans are now in their fourth consecutive World Cup semi-final and become the first nation to reach that feat. To reach the final four in 10 of their last 13 World Cups is a tremendous achievement and Brazil will undoubtedly find them a tough nut to crack.

Mats Hummels headed home a Toni Kroos free-kick after 12 minutes and that proved to be the decisive goal in Rio. France had chances to level the scores but Manuel Neuer continued his fine form in this World Cup to keep out Mathieu Valbuena and Karim Benzema.

France will be frustrated after their quarter final exit while Germany, who have not consistently been at their best this summer, became the first team into the final four. They may not be destroying teams in attack but they are getting results when it matters and will be an incredibly tough opponent for Brazil to break down.

Brazil nuts at Neymar injury
Brazil 2 Colombia 1
Brazil edged into the semi-finals of the World Cup at the expense of their South American rivals, but the injury to their young prodigy Neymar tainted the victory somewhat.

The 22-year-old had already scored four goals in the tournament to become the hosts' star man but his campaign was ended when a knee to the back left him with a fractured vertebra in his spine. A horrible moment for the youngster but he has still backed his team-mates to win the competition in his absence.

Neymar's injury dominated the headlines of a game that could've gone either way and both sides have been a credit to the tournament. Brazil, as hosts, needed to stay in the tournament to keep the passion of the tournament ticking over. They have been great hosts of arguably one of the greatest ever World Cups and we need them to stay. On the other hand, Colombia had been arguably the best team in the tournament with their superb attacking football and that man James Rodriguez. Rodriguez ended his tournament on six goals and has been the star of Brazil. His volley against Uruguay will be remembered as the best goal of this summer's World Cup so far and the 22-year-old has certainly earned himself plenty of fans along the way. If I could take any player from this World Cup at Arsenal it would be him, he has been a joy to watch.

As the game unfolded I found myself becoming very anti-Brazil. Maybe it was my new-found bias towards Rodriguez but it seemed to me, at the time, that they were fouling Colombia's star man at every opportunity to prevent him from working his magic.

But it was Brazil, who are now unbeaten in 41 home matches, that importantly made their chances count to secure victory. Thiago Silva bundled home from Neymar's corner to put the hosts in front. The defender also picked up his second booking of the tournament during the match, meaning he is set to miss the semi-final through suspension, but Brazil are appealing the decision.

The score could've been worse had Colombian goalkeeper David Ospina not produced a string of fine saves to keep the hosts out. But he could do nothing about David Luiz's stunning free-kick after 68 minutes, although some onlookers believe the award of the set piece itself was harsh.

Colombia, who earlier had a goal ruled out for offside, reduced the deficit when Carlos Bacca was hauled down in the box by goalkeeper Julio Cesar 10 minutes from time. Rodriguez continued his record of scoring in every match by successfully converting the penalty to set up a tense finish.

Neymar leaving the field on a stretcher is not how the hosts would've wanted the game to end but they still remain on course for the trophy.

Messi magic inspires Argentina
Argentina 1 Belgium 0
Lionel Messi once again proved to be the difference as he set up the winning goal on a historic night.

The Barcelona man equalled Diego Maradona's 91 appearances as his side continued their tradition of this tournament of winning by just a solitary goal.

That man Messi had a big part to play in the goal as he spun away from the defence before finding Angel Di Maria with a perfectly timed pass. Gonzalo Higuain latched onto Di Maria's deflected assist with a sweetly struck half-volley after just eight minutes.

Argentina may not have quite hit top gear in this tournament but they are getting the results and Messi has played a huge role, amazing the crowds with countless amounts of brilliance.

Argentina boss Alejandro Sabella also produced his own memorable moment when randomly and comically stumbling backwards after seeing Higuain's effort hit the crossbar.

Sabella's Belgian counterpart Marc Wilmots was less than amused with the match and was critical of Argentina's 'ordinary' performance and believing the referee was too lenient towards Messi.

But that didn't change the result and it was the end of the road for a young and promising Belgium side, while Argentina march on and leave us drooling over the possibility of a Brazil vs Argentina final.

Costa Rica undone by Krul defeat
Holland 0 Costa Rica 0
(Holland won 4-3 on penalties)

Holland's substitute goalkeeper Tim Krul grabbed the headlines after coming off the bench in extra time to save two penalties and propel his country into the final four.

In a bizarre turn of events Dutch boss Louis Van Gaal decided to change his goalkeeper towards the end of extra time and bring on Krul in place of Jasper Cillessen, despite the fact the Newcastle shot-stopper had only saved two of his last 20 penalties in the Premier League.

But the decision paid off as Krul denied Bryan Ruiz and Michael Umana in the shootout to send Dutch fans into raptures. Krul's heroics proved crucial but his opposite number in the Costa Rica goal Keylor Navas can leave the tournament with his head held high.

Navas produced numerous superb saves on the night and has been one of the best performers at the 2014 World Cup. People will certainly know the name Keylor Navas a lot more now and the Levante goalkeeper is likely to be on the shopping list of several clubs this summer.

Although Costa Rica had to rely largely on Navas on the night, they deserve huge praise for their performances as a whole in Brazil. To finish top of a group containing England, Uruguay and Italy was nothing short of superb and Jorge Luis Pinto has done a fantastic job to get the best out of his talented group. Pinto's men were undefeated going into their quarter-final tie and can be immensely proud of their efforts as, not only did they defy the odds on numerous occasions, they almost pulled off a shock and took Holland all the way to penalties in the last eight - a fantastic achievement!

Costa Rica had a penalty appeal rejected before Marcos Urena forced a save from Cillessen, but Krul's penalty heroics ultimately proved to be the difference.

A wonderful and surprising journey for Costa Rica, but take nothing away from Holland. Van Gaal's men did the job on the night and got the result to keep alive their hopes of World Cup glory.

The final four
Hosts Brazil must still be the favourites as having home advantage is a huge factor on the world stage, but it would be foolish to write off Germany, Argentina and Holland. Although the underdogs produced moments of greatness we have been left with an unsurprising semi-final line-up. Holders Spain failed to reach the knockout stages but it would've been no surprise to see the eventual final four on anyone's semi-final predictions from before the tournament.

There is plenty more drama to come. It is no longer about the underdogs. We are now into serious territory and nobody can afford any slip-ups.

Let the drama continue!

May the best team win!