The Barcelona attacker broke a World Cup qualifying record during Netherlands’ draw away to Montenegro.
Memphis Depay has surpassed Robin van Persie and Ruud van Nistelrooy as the Netherlands’ record goalscorer in World Cup qualifying.
A brace on Saturday night enabled Depay to surpass the former Manchester United strikers. He equaled the pair with a first-half penalty in a World Cup qualifier in Montenegro. Then, only nine minutes into the second half, he scored again to hand the Netherlands a two-goal and to enter the history books.
The 27-year-old has now scored 14 goals in as many World Cup qualifiers for the Netherlands.
Top 5 Dutch goalscorers in World Cup qualifiers
| # | Player | Games | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Memphis Depay | 14 | 14 |
| 2. | Ruud van Nistelrooy | 15 | 13 |
| 3. | Robin van Persie | 22 | 13 |
| 4. | Dennis Bergkamp | 14 | 12 |
| 5. | Arjen Robben | 25 | 12 |
Depay equals Bergkamp and Robben
The Barcelona star also moved level with Dennis Bergkamp and Arjen Robben as the fourth-highest goalscorer for the Dutch national team as per Opta.
Unfortunately for Louis van Gaal’s side, Depay’s heroics were not enough. Ilija Vukotic and Nikola Vujnovic scored two late goals to salvage Montenegro a 2-2 draw. Therefore, the Netherlands couldn’t book a berth at next year’s World Cup finals as Group G winners.
The three-time World Cup finalists must wait until Tuesday for a home game against Norway in Rotterdam to determine their fate.
37 – Memphis Depay has now scored 37 goals for the Netherlands, making him the joint-fourth highest goal scorer for @OnsOranje along with Dennis Bergkamp and Arjen Robben. Hunt. #MNENED pic.twitter.com/HiUU9VJfcn
— OptaJohan (@OptaJohan) November 13, 2021
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