Gakpo to remain with Netherlands at World Cup following death of unborn child

[p]The tragic news was announced on Saturday by [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/gakpo-cody/pWyuBud0/"]Gakpo[/a]'s partner, Noa van der Bij, who revealed that the couple's second child, Elijah, passed away during pregnancy.[/p][p]In a statement shared on social media, she wrote: [b]"With broken hearts, we announce the devastating news that our baby passed away during pregnancy. Thank you all for your support. Elijah Raphael Gakpo. Forever loved, forever our son."[/b][/p][image alt="The message on Instagram" id="f32b1708-5476-435a-a5ea-b52d99f6ff7c" credit-line="Instagram" guid="9a0e2125-4a06-4190-b5ce-7477d0655b91" original-width="1224" original-height="2101" /][p]Gakpo and Van der Bij, who have been together since 2020, are already parents to a son, Samuel, born in April 2024. The couple announced they were expecting a second child about a month ago.[/p][p][b]The Dutch Football Federation has stated that it is providing full support to Gakpo and his family, and added that the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/liverpool/lId4TMwf/"]Liverpool[/a] forward has decided to remain with the national team during the tournament.[/b][/p][p]It is still unclear whether the 27-year-old will play in the World Cup [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/morocco-IDKYO3R8/netherlands-WYintcWb/?mid=S0MygXWj"]Round of 32 match[/a] between the Netherlands and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/morocco/IDKYO3R8/"]Morocco[/a], which is scheduled to kick off at 03:00 CEST on Tuesday.[/p][p]Gakpo has started every group stage match for the Netherlands and scored twice in the 5-1 win over [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/sweden/OQyqbHWB/"]Sweden[/a].[/p]