Memphis Depay is a Dutch professional footballer who has represented the Netherlands national team as a forward since 2013. As of July 2024, he has scored 46 goals, ten of which were via penalty kicks, in 98 international appearances. He is the second all-time top scorer of his country, with only former teammate Robin van Persie (50) having recorded more goals for the Netherlands.
Depay made his senior debut for his country in October 2013, coming on as a substitute for Jeremain Lens in a FIFA World Cup qualifier against Turkey. On 18 June 2014, he scored his first international goal against Australia at the World Cup finals in Brazil, becoming the Netherlands' youngest ever goalscorer at the tournament at the age of 20.[1] He then got his second goal in the competition five days later, in a 2–0 win against Chile.
Depay scored his first brace for the Netherlands in a 3–1 World Cup qualifying win over Luxembourg in November 2016. Despite only recording three goals in his first 26 caps, Depay would go on to score sixteen goals in his following 25 appearances, including eleven goals in eighteen matches under the management of Ronald Koeman in 2018 and 2019. After the Netherlands missed out on qualification for both UEFA Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup, Depay scored six goals during Euro 2020 qualifying to help his side reach a first major tournament for six years. In the finals tournament, Depay got on the scoresheet against both Austria and North Macedonia during the group stage.
Depay recorded his first international hat-trick in a 6–1 World Cup qualifying win over Turkey on 7 September 2021, surpassing Wesley Sneijder and equalling Johan Cruyff and Abe Lenstra in the Netherlands' top ten all-time scorers list.[2] He then scored a further nine goals in the 2022 World Cup qualification tournament, finishing joint-top scorer of the UEFA section alongside England's Harry Kane. Depay would finish the year of 2021 with seventeen international goals in sixteen matches, breaking Patrick Kluivert's national record of twelve for most scored in a single calendar year;[3] only five players from any UEFA country had ever surpassed this tally.[4] Depay scored his third World Cup goal at the 2022 tournament, coming against the United States in the round of 16. This strike saw him surpass former teammate Klaas-Jan Huntelaar as the Netherlands' second all-time top goalscorer, now trailing only Robin van Persie.[5]
In total, Depay has scored three goals at the FIFA World Cup, fifteen during World Cup qualification, three at the UEFA European Championship, seven during European Championship qualification, and seven in the UEFA Nations League. The remainder of his goals, eleven, have come in friendlies. He has scored five goals against Gibraltar, more than against any other opponent.
- ^ "Depay: I couldn't have dreamed of better". FIFA. 19 June 2014. Archived from the original on 22 June 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
- ^ McVitie, Peter (7 September 2021). "Memphis scores first Netherlands hat-trick to level Cruyff in all-time scoring chart". Goal. Archived from the original on 5 April 2023. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
- ^ "Memphis Depay niet te stoppen in 2021: record Patrick Kluivert uit de boeken". AD (in Dutch). 12 October 2021. Archived from the original on 26 October 2021. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
- ^ "Memphis Depay in the all time ranking!". IFFHS. 18 November 2021. Archived from the original on 27 November 2021. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
- ^ "Memphis schudt met recordtreffer Huntelaar af en gaat op jacht naar Van Persie". IFFHS (in Dutch). 3 December 2022. Archived from the original on 1 February 2023. Retrieved 21 July 2023.