The Qatar World Cup has already produced many memorable moments in just over a week’s time.
Be it Richarlison’s incredible goal, Saudi Arabia’s shocking win over Argentina or Japan upsetting Germany, there have been a number of beautiful stories that have been already created.
Moreover, there have also been a few impressive goal celebrations that has been showcased to entertain the fans.
Jack Grealish produced a memorable celebration to pay tribute to an ill Manchester City fan against Iran. Now the Netherlands have also gained social media love for their celebration in the 1-1 draw against Ecuador.
Their striker Cody Gakpo wowed the fans with an amazing goal in the draw, coming up with an exquisite left-footed drive that powered past the goalkeeper.
The PSV Eindhoven forward definitely raised his stakes with the impressive strike, raising the interest from the likes of Manchester United and Liverpool for his acquisition.
But it wasn’t even Gakpo’s celebrations that really caught the attention of the fans.
Instead, it was that of their defender and captain Virgil van Dijk that left viewers slightly puzzled by his mannerisms. Van Dijk had no part in the goal but seemed to be enthralled at what he saw from his compatriots.
Van Dijk approached his teammates a bit later than the others, as he had a lot of ground to cover from the other side of the pitch to join the celebrations.
As Gakpo was being congratulated by his teammates in a huddle, the Liverpool defender aimed a kung fu kick towards his teammates.
Of course, it wasn’t directed towards Gakpo or any other teammate but he hit a kung fu kick into empty air to showcase his joy for the goal.
This particular bit of martial arts-inspired celebration from Van Dijk might have been a tribute to his Liverpool teammate Roberto Firmino, who is famous for celebrating in a similarly wild manner.
Virgil van Dijk with a tribute to Liverpool teammate Bobby Firmino’s kung-fu kick tradition 💥 pic.twitter.com/dC3afqTtWV
The Brazilian forward has not been picked by his national team in the World Cup squad, something which irked and surprised some Liverpool fans. Instead, Gabriel Jesus has been chosen to be an alternative option in the frontline.
The Dutch defender is really close mates with Firmino, having been playing with him since arriving at Anfield.
Van Dijk had a topsy-turvy outing in the game and did not have an ideal second half. He was criticized by fans for backing away from an Ecuador player and allowing them to create the chance leading to Enner Valencia’s equalizer.
The Netherlands captain is unlikely to allow the criticism to get to him and will need to lead by example to motivate his teammates to rediscover their winning form in the next game against Qatar.
A loss could see them knocked out of the World Cup, so Van Dijk has to ensure his side doesn’t have a lapse in concentration and drop points against the hosts.
