Published on 6/30/2026
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Last update: 09:18 (Mecca time)
Netherlands national team captain Virgil van Dijk expressed his disappointment after his country’s exit from the round of 32 of the 2026 World Cup, following a loss to Morocco on penalties, stressing that one mistake in stoppage time was enough to end the “Mills” campaign in the tournament.
The Netherlands was on its way to clinching the qualification ticket after taking the lead with a goal scored by Cody Gakpo, before Morocco equalized through Issa Diop in stoppage time, so the match went to penalty kicks, which smiled at the “Atlas Lions.”
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Van Dijk said in statements to the Dutch network NOS: “We defended well, and prevented them from finding spaces between the midfield and defense lines, but a mistake in stoppage time ended everything.”
He added: “We practiced penalty kicks and gave our all, but in the end there was nothing I could think of but consoling the players who missed their kicks.”
With this loss, the Netherlands exited the World Cup in the round of 32, while the Moroccan national team continued its journey in the tournament to set up a date with Canada in the round of 16.
