In the final round of international matches for 2017, Minnesota United had several players in action over the course of the past two weeks. Michael Boxall (New Zealand) competed for a spot in the World Cup, while Francisco Calvo (Costa Rica), Kevin Molino (Trinidad and Tobago) and Johan Venegas (Costa Rica) participated in friendlies.

Boxall and the New Zealand national team took on Peru in the inter-confederation playoff for one of the final spots in the 2018 World Cup. The All Whites put up a spirited performance in front of a sold-out crowd in Wellington, as they managed to earn a 0-0 draw with Boxall going the full 90. This put them in a good spot for the second leg in Lima, but the road match would prove too much for the Kiwis. Boxall once again played all 90 minutes at center back, but his side could not keep the clean sheet again as Peru knocked in a pair to book its spot in Russia.

On the other side of the globe, Calvo and Venegas were on a European tour with Costa Rica as they begin preparations for World Cup play next summer. It kicked off with an extremely tough match against Spain. The Ticos managed to hold the hosts to two goals in the first half, but a flurry of scoring in the second set up a 5-0 win for Spain. Calvo played the full match with Venegas getting 75 minutes in before being subbed off. They then traveled to take on Hungary, who missed out on qualifying this cycle. Venegas once again got the start and played 67 minutes, while Calvo came on as a second-half substitute in a 1-0 loss for the Ticos.

Molino took the role of captain for Trinidad and Tobago for their friendly against Grenada last weekend. After falling behind, Molino rallied the Soca Warriors to come back and earn a 2-2 draw as he scored the equalizer in the second minute of stoppage time.