The Netherlands come out of the final international break of this year with a win and a draw against Hungary and Bosnia to add to their tally, but also some cracks developing within their squad, with Wout Weghorst and Cody Gakpo making headlines.
Gakpo came into the international break in great form, scoring 4 goals in his last 4 games for Liverpool, bagging a brace against Brighton in their EFL Cup fixture. Weghorst also seems to have found his footing at new club Ajax, scoring 4 goals for them in 9 games across all competitions. (Stats via Fotmob)
Both Gakpo and Weghorst managed to score against Hungary, but their performances were overshadowed by whispers of tension between the two forwards.
The Netherlands cruised to a commanding 4-0 win against Hungary, but the match wasn’t without controversies. Early in the game, Hungarian coach Adam Szalai collapsed on the sidelines, leading to a 13-minute delay as he was rushed to the hospital.
While Szalai recovered, the somber incident cast a shadow over proceedings. Yet, moments after the game resumed, the Dutch were awarded a penalty.
Weghorst converted the spot kick with a confident strike but immediately drew criticism for an exuberant celebration deemed insensitive given Szalai’s collapse. Sliding on his knees and roaring with a lion gesture, the Ajax forward was chastised by pundits and fans alike for what many felt was an ill-timed display of jubilation.
Former Dutch international Pierre van Hooijdonk commented, “A bit of subdued cheering would have been appropriate.”
Adding to this event was what unfolded after Netherlands were awarded a second penalty just before halftime, in the 12th minuted of added time in the first half.
This time there was a dispute between Weghorst and Gakpo over who would take the penalty, eventually needing an intervention from captain Virgil van Dijk.
Manager Ronald Koeman later clarified, “Wout was our designated penalty taker, but for the second, I asked Virgil to decide. It never looks good when players fight over it.” Eventually Gakpo took the penalty and scored, continuing his purple patch.
Following this 4-0 win, Gakpo posted pictures from the game on Instagram, captioning them: “Momentum is ours—quarters next.” The post featured several teammates, including Weghorst in two of the images.
But what fans noticed on further inspection was that while Weghorst was in a couple of pictures, the striker wasn’t tagged by Gakpo in any of them.
While this wouldn’t raise any concerns in a regular scenario, what makes it worse is that Gakpo has tagged every other player in both pictures, going as far as tagging defender Jurien Timber twice, once in each picture.
It gives a sense that there’s a cold vibe between Weghorst and Gakpo thanks to the incident that took place on Sunday.
The only possible positive out of this discord for the Dutch national side is its timing. This international break marks the last one of this year, and all national sides will not convene until March 2025.
This long gap offers a chance for tempers to cool and relationships to mend. Both players have shown their quality on the pitch, and their partnership—or lack thereof—could prove crucial as the Netherlands eye further progress in the Nations League.
As the dust settles, the hope remains that any issues between Gakpo and Weghorst are resolved in time. For now, Dutch fans will be left pondering: Is this a case of a one-off disagreement, or is there indeed some other lasting beef between Cody Gakpo and Wout Weghorst?
