Cody Gakpo’s girlfriend, Noa van der Bij, has posted an emotional statement to confirm that their son has passed away during pregnancy.
The Liverpool star and his partner announced in May that they were expecting another boy. They already have one son, Samuel, who was born in 2024.
Gakpo is currently representing the Netherlands at the 2026 World Cup, while Van der Bij is in the United States of America to support him from the stands. The latter took to Instagram to share the news that their baby, who they named Elijah Raphael Gakpo, had passed.
Cody Gakpo and Noa van der Bij Lose Son
Jay Biggerstaff (IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters)
Van der Bij posted to her Instagram story on Saturday afternoon, saying: “With broken hearts, we share the devastating news that our baby boy passed away during pregnancy. Thank you for your love and support. Elijah Raphael Gakpo Forever loved. Forever our son.”
She then shared a heartbreaking story of how the couple and their son, Samuel, went to light a candle at church and came across another little boy called Elijah. Her next post stated:
“We went to church to light a candle. Afterwards, we walked to the church playground with our son Samuel. There was only one other child there. His name was Elijah.
“There could not have been a more beautiful sign from God He reminded us that our little boy is never far away.”
It’s a return to the Red Bull Ring this weekend for Formula One, with many Dutch fans making their way over to support their hero Max Verstappen.
With this race already being declared as a heat hazard for the drivers, meaning the temperature is predicted to be over 31 degrees Celsius, tomorrow’s race is already looking like it will be a tough one.
It was a controversial ending to qualifying in Austria, as George Russell kept his pole and Max Verstappen crashed out.
Last year it was McLaren‘s Lando Norris who took the chequered flag first ahead of his teammate Oscar Piastri and Ferrari‘s Charles Leclerc. This year, though, McLaren don’t look so dominant, with Mercedes currently being the team to beat in the Constructors’ Championship.
Ahead of the race, the Supercomputer has made its predictions on who will take the win this year. After a confusing qualifying session earlier today, we now know that George Russell will start from pole position tomorrow with the two Ferraris of Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton starting in P2 and P3.
Austrian GP predicted by Supercomputer (22-11)
Position
Driver
Team
DNF.
Fernando Alonso
Aston Martin
DNF.
Franco Colapinto
Alpine
20.
Lance Stroll
Aston Martin
19.
Nico Hulkenberg
Audi
18.
Gabriel Bortoleto
Audi
17.
Valtteri Bottas
Cadillac
16.
Sergio Perez
Cadillac
15.
Carlos Sainz Jr
Williams
14.
Esteban Ocon
Haas
13.
Oliver Bearman
Haas
12.
Pierre Gasly
Alpine
11.
Alex Albon
Williams
10 Arvid Lindblad
Racing Bulls
Starting in P10 and predicted to finish 10th, Lindblad had a good qualifying, and the Racing Bulls looks to have set up a good car for this weekend. Currently 13th in the Drivers’ Championship, the British driver will be looking to gain points on his next closest rival, Franco Colapinto.
9 Liam Lawson
Racing Bulls
Starting one place higher than his teammate and predicted to finish one place higher is Lawson. With the two Racing Bulls starting so close together, the team would expect no contact and fair play between the two of them, which, if things go as predicted, would result in a double points finish for the team.
8 Isack Hadjar
Red Bull
Once again, the Supercomputer has predicted the eighth-place driver to finish in eighth. After finishing sixth in Spain, Hadjar will be looking to carry on a pretty solid job for Red Bull this season. After so many years of struggles with their second driver, this would be Hadjar’s fourth consecutive points finish since his retirement from the Miami Grand Prix at the start of May, so many would say a pretty successful run.
7 Max Verstappen
Red Bull
Fan-favorite Verstappen will be hoping not to disappoint the crowds that have gathered for him this weekend, but after a crash in qualifying today, the fast and furious Dutchman will be hoping to make up for missing out on a pole position that could have been his.
6 Lewis Hamilton
Ferrari
After a win two weeks ago in Spain, Hamilton will be hoping to continue his success by claiming a win here as well. With many now hoping that this could be the start of a championship challenge for the Ferrari driver, a win here would really keep that momentum going, but, alas, the Supercomputer has not predicted that and instead put him down in sixth.
5 George Russell
Mercedes
Lisa Leutner via Reuters
Pole sitter Russell is not likely to have a good race if we go off of these predictions. With Hamilton now between Russell and his teammate Kimi Antonelli in the Drivers’ Championship, and the young Italian seeming to be in top form this season, a bad race here is not what the 28-year-old needs if he wants to keep his championship hopes alive.
4 Charles Leclerc
Ferrari
Predicted to just miss out on the podium is Leclerc. After a retirement in Spain, the Monegasque will be hoping to gain back some of the points that he lost out on at the last race weekend. With only two points separating Leclerc and Norris in the Drivers’ Championship, finishing behind the McLaren driver is not a good result for Leclerc.
3 Kimi Antonelli
Mercedes
The current championship leader is not predicted to come out on top this weekend. Starting in fourth place, Antonelli will have to pull off a few overtakes to get back to winning ways like he’s used to. If the Supercomputer is anything to go by, though, there will only be one overtake necessary for the Italian instead of the three for first place.
2 Lando Norris
McLaren
With his home Grand Prix looming, Norris will want to go into next weekend with confidence and a back-to-back podium finish will provide that. After finishing in third last race weekend, Norris is predicted to go one step higher this weekend and claim second.
1 Oscar Piastri
McLaren
A 1-2 finish is predicted for the British-based team, with the Aussie taking the top step. A third podium for Piastri and a first win this season would do a lot to boost his and the team’s morale going into an important weekend for them next week. Piastri will be starting from seventh tomorrow, so the possibility of a win may not seem terribly likely, but it is definitely not completely out of the question.
Pulling on the Three Lions shirt is widely regarded as one of the greatest honours an English footballer can experience.
Representing your country at major international tournaments is the pinnacle of the sport, but that privilege also comes with enormous pressure, not only to perform but to carry the expectations of millions of supporters.
However, while many England players have endured criticism for their performances, Neville found himself at the centre of a very different controversy in 2003 — one that, according to his own admission, made him feel like ‘the most hated footballer in the country.’
The controversy stemmed from his decision to support Rio Ferdinand, who had been controversially removed from the England squad after missing a scheduled drugs test. Neville, alongside several experienced teammates, threatened to boycott a Euro 2004 qualifier against Turkey in protest, believing the FA had treated Ferdinand unfairly.
The situation quickly escalated, and Neville ultimately found himself pushed to the brink as a consequence.
“I’ll always be the one who takes the blame for the England team threatening to go on strike before the Euro 2004 qualifier against Turkey.
“At 28, I would never play for England again. I’d be slaughtered by the media and fans. I’d definitely become England’s most hated footballer – if I wasn’t already. But that’s how strongly I felt about it.”
He added: “It was the week of England’s final qualifying match for Euro 2004 and my dad had just picked up me and my brother to take us to Manchester Airport so we could fly to London and meet the squad when I got the call: Rio had been dropped because of the missed drugs test. At first, I genuinely thought someone was joking.”
Together with captain David Beckham, Neville organised a meeting with the players, where the squad unanimously agreed to threaten strike action before the qualifier. It was a significant decision, especially considering the stage he was at in his career.
At 28, Neville was entering what should have been the peak of his playing career. By then, he had already represented England at two European Championships in 1996 and 2000, as well as the World Cup in 1998, having only missed the 2002 tournament through injury.
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England World Cup Quiz
You scored
out of 20
At Manchester United, Neville was also on track to secure his sixth Premier League title in eight seasons. Walking away from football at that point would have been virtually unheard of, but the intensity of the media backlash made him seriously contemplate it.
“By the following morning, news of our decision had leaked and we were being branded a disgrace. The media certainly weren’t lining up to support a group of millionaires threatening to strike.
“Unless the FA changed its position, I was prepared to walk away, despite the serious consequences.
“The pressure was overwhelming. The more I thought about it, the more I convinced myself there was only one option — to leave.”
“Playing for England was one long roller-coaster: ups and downs, but also quite a few moments when you’re not really sure if you’re enjoying the ride”
Ferguson’s Phone Call Changed Neville’s Mind
Throughout his playing days, Neville regularly spoke about the immense respect he had for Ferguson. Therefore, when he found himself considering walking away from England, it was fitting that the legendary Scot was the person who convinced him otherwise.
“Look, you’ve trained too hard, played too hard, you can’t throw everything away. You’ve made your point, you’ve taken it as far as you can, now you’ve got to go and play the game.
“You just need to calm down and think that your England career could be over in one hit. What effect does that have on you as a player, as a person? Does that affect United? I can’t let you do that.”
When the Rio Ferdinand controversy finally subsided, Neville remained an England international, although his career with the national side never truly reached the heights many had expected.
Gary Neville only felt two players he played with at Manchester United were ‘genuinely world-class’. He snubbed Rooney, Keane and Scholes.
England again failed to live up to expectations at Euro 2004, suffering a heartbreaking quarter-final defeat to Portugal on penalties. Two years later at the 2006 World Cup, history repeated itself with another painful elimination at the same stage, against the same opponents, via another penalty shootout.
Neville eventually won the last of his 85 caps in 2007, retaining immense personal pride but achieving little tangible success with England. He later reflected on his international career and admitted that, in many ways, it felt like a “waste of time”.
Pete Sampras was one of the most dominant figures in tennis throughout the 1990s, collecting 64 singles titles, including 14 Grand Slam crowns.
He remained unbeaten in Wimbledon singles finals, winning all seven he contested, and remains the only man to claim three consecutive titles at SW19 on two different occasions (1993-95 and 1997-2000). Sampras retired in 2002 following his triumph at the US Open.
During his time at the top, there was no shortage of challengers eager to dethrone him. He developed memorable rivalries with Boris Becker, Michael Chang, Goran Ivanisevic, Stefan Edberg, and Richard Krajicek.
Speaking to The Guardian in 2007, Sampras was asked to name his toughest opponent across his 14-year career, and he didn’t even hesitate when revealing who gave him the most problems.
Pete Sampras’ Choice For Toughest Tennis Opponent
He picked fellow American Andre Agassi, whose elite returning ability perfectly countered Sampras’ devastating serve. The pair met repeatedly in Grand Slam finals, both reached world No. 1, and faced each other 34 times overall, with Sampras winning 20 of those encounters.
“Andre Agassi. We had contrasting styles and he had that extra gear. If you made a mistake, then you knew it was game over. I also like to think that I made him realise that how you played was more important than your image.
“When he retired, I thought it was important to reach out to him, so I sent him a few text messages. It would have been a shame for us not to be in contact just because we were both no longer playing. Now we’re retired and bringing up families, we joke about how much we finally have in common.”
The Sampras-Agassi rivalry became one of the defining storylines of modern tennis, with two all-time greats boasting contrasting styles and personalities that consistently brought the best out of one another.
They contested 16 finals, including Miami in 1994 and 1995, the Canadian Open in 1995, Los Angeles in 1999 and 2001, the ATP Championships (Masters) in 1999, Indian Wells in 1995 and 2001, as well as Atlanta in 1992 and San Jose in 1996. Sampras finished with an 11-9 advantage on hard courts, while Agassi held a 3-2 edge on clay.
Agassi Snubbed Sampras When Naming His Toughest Opponent
Murray clearly had a preference when it came to playing against the three legends of tennis.
In 2022, however, Agassi did not name Sampras as the toughest opponent of his career, instead selecting Australian star Pat Rafter.
“Pat and I had so many great matches. He was truly the most enjoyable player for me to compete against because he was such a sportsman, such a good guy,” he said.
“He was a class act in victory and defeat. His game was the opposite of mine, but yet, unlike [Pete] Sampras, he allowed me to get into a rhythm out there, and I always knew I was going to play well against him, and we would raise each other’s game.”
Despite that, Agassi admitted Sampras played a vital role in shaping his career: “A great rival is like a mirror. You have to look at yourself, acknowledge where you fall short, make adjustments, and nurture the areas where you overachieve. There were times my rivals brought out the best in me, and there were times they brought out the worst.
“They probably helped me win things I never would have otherwise. They also cost me titles. I don’t know how you quantify what it would have been without a rival like Pete Sampras. I would have won more, but I think I would have been worse without him.”
