Virgil van Dijk, Ryan Gravenberch and Cody Gakpo all suffered an early exit from the World Cup, with Liverpool's captain criticized for his performance in the Netherlands' defeat to Morocco
12:35, 30 Jun 2026
MONTERREY, MEXICO - JUNE 29: Virgil van Dijk of Holland disappointed during the World Cup match between Holland v Morocco at the Monterrey Stadium on June 29, 2026 in Monterrey Mexico (Photo by Eric Verhoeven/Soccrates/Getty Images)
Virgil van Dijk was criticized for his performance as the Netherlands were knocked out of the World Cup(Image: Getty Images)
Virgil van Dijk has borne the brunt of the criticism following the Netherlands’ exit from the World Cup, with the Dutch media giving the Liverpool captain a harsh verdict on his performance against Morocco.
The Netherlands crashed out of the tournament at the first stage of the knockouts, falling to a penalty shootout defeat after drawing 1-1. The result means it’s an early return to Liverpool for Van Dijk, Ryan Gravenberch and Cody Gakpo, who join Florian Wirtz in exiting the World Cup early.
Gakpo had looked to have won the game when he scored 18 minutes from time, only for Issa Diop to equalize in added time before Justin Kluivert, Quinten Timber and Crysencio Summerville all missed during the shootout for the Dutch.
Van Dijk could only watch on as his teammates failed from the spot, and some of the Dutch media has not reacted too kindly to the defender’s performance.
Voetbal International gave Van Dijk a 5/10 rating, the joint-lowest score for the players alongside Nathan Ake as manager Ronald Koeman was awarded 4/10. Gravenberch and Gakpo were both rated 6/10.
Voetbal Primeur was more complimentary to Van Dijk, awarding him a 6.5, although it did acknowledge that his performance suffered later on in the game.
GUADALUPE, MEXICO - JUNE 29: Virgil van Dijk #4 and players of the Netherlands show dejection after their defeat through the penalty shootout during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Netherlands and Morocco at Monterrey Stadium on June 29, 2026 in Guadalupe, Mexico. (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)
Virgil van Dijk reacts after the Netherlands are beaten by Morocco in a penalty shootout(Image: Getty Images)
“In the attrition battle between the Netherlands and Morocco, Van Dijk was the leader ‘we’ needed for a long time,” it wrote.
“The captain had his affairs in order, coached continuously (can anyone do better?) and radiated that the Orange would not fall over. Yet things went wrong. Van Dijk did not get off scot-free at the late 1-1. He did not take a penalty, after his miss four years ago against Argentina.”
Gravenberch was also awarded a 6.5, with his verdict reading: “As always, Gravenberch played with his head, but this time maybe a little too much. On the ball, he often saw the right solution, but he remained too introverted. The Dutch need more guts and dominance from him to become world champions.”
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The same score was awarded to Gakpo, who came off the bench to give the Netherlands the lead. The Liverpool forward was left in tears after scoring, having announced the death of his unborn son just days earlier.
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“Goosebumps, goosebumps and more goosebumps,” his verdict read. “Gakpo was not in the game for seventy minutes, which will have had everything to do with the loss of his unborn son Elijah Raphael.
“And then he scored. Joy and sorrow fought for precedence. It had to be Gakpo. In extra time, he was substituted with cramp.”