Sporting Kansas City defender Marcel de Jong started for Canada on Tuesday in the final leg of a home-and-away series with Belize in CONCACAF's third round of qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The 28-year-old left back played 75 minutes at FFB Stadium in Belmopan, Belize in the 1-1 draw as Canada advanced 4-1 on aggregate.
Canada moves on to join El Salvador, Honduras and Mexico in Group A for the next stage of qualifying, which will begin Nov. 13-17 and continue through September 2016. Ranked No. 102 by FIFA, Canada is seeking the nation's second all-time World Cup appearance and first since 1986.
Since making his senior team debut at age 21 in 2007, de Jong now has 38 career appearances for Canada. In 2015, de Jong has started seven times on the international stage -- including all three of Canada's games at the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup -- to lead his country to a 3-1-3 record with only two goals allowed.
De Jong has one goal and one assist in 14 appearances across all competitions for Sporting KC since signing with the club prior to the 2015 campaign. He previously played 10 professional seasons in the Netherlands and Germany.
