The Netherlands' Memphis Depay (#10) was the star of the night with two goals, an assist, and a tied record
The Netherlands continued their perfect start to the 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign with an 8-0 home win over minnows Malta.
The match marked Oranje's first in Groningen since 1983, when they beat Iceland 3-0 in a EURO 1984 qualifier. It was Ronald Koeman's second of 78 Dutch caps. Forty-two years later, the iconic libero returned to the city where he grew up and made his professional debut as the Netherlands' manager.
The game against Malta also potentially marked a historical night for Dutch football, as striker Memphis Depay was just two goals away from Robin van Persie's all-time record of 50 goals for Oranje.
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The former Manchester United, FC Barcelona, and Atletico Madrid striker would soon get the chance to close the gap to one after Spanish referee Ricardo de Burgos blew for a penalty for a foul on Xavi Simons. After a relatively lengthy VAR review, Memphis calmly converted from the spot and had 81 minutes left to chase the record.
The record-equalling goal followed just seven minutes later when Denzel Dumfries got the ball in front of the goal and Xavi Simons stepped over it to give Memphis the chance to score. The Corinthians striker laced it into the net with a powerful effort, scoring his 50th goal for the Netherlands.
Read more about Memphis Depay equalling Robin van Persie's record
The Dutch party continued in the 21st minute, when captain Virgil van Dijk, who also returned to the city where he broke through for FC Groningen, fired the ball past Henry Bonello for a third Oranje goal.
The Netherlands kept pushing for a fourth, but wouldn't get rewarded for their efforts until the 61st minute. Memphis Depay delivered a pin-perfect deep ball to Xavi Simons, who slid the ball past Bonello for a much-deserved 4-0.
After the man of the night, Memphis Depay, was taken off, his replacement quickly struck: Aston Villa's Donyell Malen connected on a low cross from Micky van de Ven and scored the Netherlands' fifth just two minutes after coming on and with his first touch of the match.
Malen's cameo became increasingly impressive, with a fabulous assist for Noa Lang's 6-0 before scoring the Netherlands' seventh goal after a flashy solo effort and precise strike in the right-hand corner.
With energy and a fiery eagerness, Oranje continued to look for an eighth goal, and Spurs' Micky van de Ven got them their eighth in the second minute of injury time, half-volleying the ball in the far corner for his first goal for his country.
The Netherlands ended their first block of World Cup qualifiers with a resounding 8-0 win over Malta - their biggest since the 11-0 win over San Marino in 2012 - and closed the gap to group leaders Finland, who've played two more games, to one point.
Oranje continue their qualifying campaign in September with games against Poland and Lithuania.
View all the match statistics on Flashscore.
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