Cody Gakpo scored for the third game in a row to help the Netherlands produce one of the most comprehensive World Cup results of the weekend action. Midway through the first half, Cody Gakpo scored his third goal of the competition to start the scoring, and Frenkie de Jong added a second just after the break. The team led by Louis van Gaal moves on to the knockout rounds, where they will next play the United States. As a result, Qatar became the first World Cup host nation to finish without a victory or even a point.
The Netherlands’ star of the competition until that point was without a doubt Gakpo, who scored twice in the final 26 minutes to give his team the lead. He had used his head to score against Senegal in the first game, his left against Ecuador, and his right against Qatar, where he finished off his flawless hat-trick with a right-footed drive from just inside the box. It was two minutes later. Memphis Depay was waiting at the far post when Davy Klaassen’s cross deflected off a defender’s head. His close-range attempt was blocked, but De Jong was given a clear shot from a few yards out that he prodded into the empty net.
After coming on as a replacement, Steven Berghuis felt he had scored the third goal for the Netherlands on the 68th minute, but VAR disallowed it due to a handball by Gakpo in the buildup. They are getting ready to focus on the Group B games this evening to find out who their opponents will be in the round of 16, but it didn’t hurt them.
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