Cody Gakpo and his girlfriend have suffered a miscarriage, the Liverpool star’s partner confirmed in a heartbreaking Instagram post on Saturday.
Noa van der Bij wrote on social media: ‘With broken hearts, we share that our little boy passed away during pregnancy. Thank you for all the support.’
Liverpool forward Gakpo, 27, is away on World Cup duty with the Netherlands. It is not known when the pair lost their unborn child.
Noa, who shares a son, Samuel, with Gakpo, added: ‘We went to church together and lit a candle. Afterwards, we went to the playground with our son Samuel.
‘There was another child there and his name was Elijah. There could not have been a more beautiful sign from God.’
The striker revealed four weeks ago that he and Noa were expecting their second son.
Liverpool star Cody Gakpo and his partner have suffered a miscarriage
Noa van der Bij confirmed the heartbreaking news on Instagram on Saturday
Dutch publication De Telegraaf reported that Gakpo did not get off the Dutch team bus before training four days ago but later arrived by car. The Netherlands’ football federation explained that the 27-year-old was not late for training but there was a good reason for his delayed arrival.
Gakpo will stay with the Netherlands squad for the remainder of their campaign in the United States.
Gakpo posted: ‘This is an incredibly difficult time for our family.
‘We kindly ask for our privacy and space. Thank you for your understanding.’
The Dutch federation said in a statement: ‘First of all, we sympathise with Cody and his family, Noa and their son Samuel. This is a very sad private situation.
‘Naturally, we were already aware of this, and the KNVB is trying to support the family where possible. Cody has decided, in consultation with his girlfriend, to remain with the group.
‘We respect their privacy and therefore will not comment further on the situation, including the way in which we are trying to be there for them. We will also not provide any further information on this in the near future. If anything is shared about this, it is up to the family themselves.’
