10-Man USA Beat Bosnia 2-0 to Reach World Cup Round of 16

Tillman, Balogun goals send USA to World Cup Round of 16 

Folarin Balogun scored before his red card, and Malik Tillman’s free-kick made it 2-0 as the USA beat Bosnia & Herzegovina to reach the World Cup knockout stage.

USA advance despite Balogun red card in 2-0 win over Bosnia... 

The USMNT kicked off their 250th independence anniversary celebrations early, clinching a spot in the FIFA World Cup Round of 16 with a 2-0 win over Bosnia & Herzegovina at Levi’s Stadium. It’s only their second knockout-stage victory in nine World Cup tries.

Levi’s Stadium was buzzing before kickoff, with a fired-up home crowd singing the national anthem as World Cup fever took over the Bay Area. The co-hosts came in under pressure, having gone 13 straight World Cup matches without a win against European teams (6 draws, 7 losses). Bosnia threatened first though, forcing Matt Freese into a 10th-minute save to push out Ermedin Demirovic’s hard shot from inside the area.

The USMNT grew into the game, and the hosts thought they’d opened the scoring on 30 minutes, but the goal didn’t stand. Weston McKennie won the ball high up the field, then slipped in Folarin Balogun, who was offside. Balogun stayed calm to round Nikola Katic and slot home a low finish, only for the flag to go up.

Balogun thought he had his third goal of the tournament right on halftime, and this one did count. He pounced on a ball that took two deflections into his path and drilled it through Nikola Vasilj’s legs. The US nearly doubled the lead before the break too, but Balogun hit the crossbar after connecting with Sergiño Dest’s flick-on.

Bosnia’s problems started early in the second half when captain Edin Dzeko went off injured, prompting Sergej Barbarez to make three changes at once. Momentum shifted Bosnia’s way in the 64th minute though, after VAR intervened. Balogun was shown red for a dangerous tackle on Tarik Muharemović, catching the defender’s ankle with his studs.

The crowd went quiet as Mauricio Pochettino used the second hydration break to rally his 10 men for the final 20 minutes. Even with the extra player, Bosnia couldn’t find a way through a stubborn US defense. The hosts did put it in the net on 79’ when Christian Pulisic poked home from close range, but the offside flag went up again.

The Americans responded right away, though, making it 2-0 minutes later. Malik Tillman curled in a dipping free-kick from 20 yards, and Vasilj got a touch but couldn’t keep it out.

Ermin Mahmic fired a late shot just wide, but Bosnia couldn’t find an answer. They couldn’t make the extra man count and lost their first-ever World Cup knockout match. 

A shell-shocked Folarin Balogun was shown red

Playing most of the second half down to 10, Pochettino’s side showed real grit to secure a spot in the Round of 16 for the fourth World Cup in a row they’ve played in. Next up is a Seattle showdown with Belgium.