Hosts Qatar crash out of World Cup after Dutch held by Ecuador

Cody Gakpo scored again at the World Cup but the Netherlands missed the chance to secure a place in the last 16 on Friday as they were held to a 1-1 draw by a battling Ecuador, a result which eliminated host nation Qatar.

AS IT HAPPENED | FIFA World Cup: Group A - Netherlands 1-1 Ecuador

Gakpo, the gangly PSV Eindhoven forward who has been strongly linked with a move to Manchester United, put the Netherlands in front with a superb strike in the sixth minute at the Khalifa International Stadium.

Yet, with a large and vociferous support behind them, Ecuador fought back with such ferocity that the Dutch were rattled, and they deserved the equaliser when it came through Enner Valencia four minutes after half-time.

It was Ecuador captain Valencia's third goal of the World Cup already after his brace in his country's opening win over Qatar.

And one consequence of this result is that the host nation, already beaten twice, are the first team to be eliminated from their own World Cup.

In contrast three-time beaten finalists the Netherlands are not quite through to the next round, with one point separating them, Ecuador and Senegal, who defeated Qatar 3-1 earlier.

Ecuador and Senegal meet in the last round of Group A matches next Tuesday, while Louis van Gaal's Dutch side meet the hosts knowing a draw will make certain their place in the knockout phase.

Much of the talk before this game had been about Memphis Depay, with the Barcelona forward having impressed as a second-half substitute in the 2-0 win over Senegal in his first game in two months after a thigh injury.

While he once again started on the bench here, it was the 23-year-old Gakpo who again starred in front of goal.

Scorer of the late headed opener against Senegal, he got an