Opinion: Ermedin Demirović needs to be better for Bosnia-Herzegovina | OneFootball

Bosnia and Herzegovina are now just one game away from the World Cup following a massive victory on Thursday night, as they defeated Wales on penalty kicks in their playoff semifinal matchup.

It was a wonderful moment for the country, who were led by a number of players who feature domestically in Germany. A pair of Schalke talents were huge on opposing sides of the pitch, with Nikola Katić clearing away several crosses at the back and Edin Džeko scoring a vital equalizer late on.

In the shootout St. Pauli goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj made a vital save on the fourth attempt he faced, and 18-year-old RB Salzburg phenom Kerim Alajbegovic slotted home the winner, with his former club Bayer Leverkusen possessing a buyback clause. Even Borussia Mönchengladbach frontman Haris Tabaković made himself a nuisance.

There was one more Bundesliga name out on the field for Bosnia, and he’s one of the better players in the league, lining up for 3rd place VfB Stuttgart. That is none other than Ermedin Demirović.

However, instead of helping his country to the next round, he almost cost them that spot in the final qualifying contest.

Disasterclass

It’s hard to describe Demirović’s performance on the night without it seeming like a personal attack. Long story short, he was horrid.

The first half came and went without little incident. Wales were the better side, and they controlled the pace of play and possession of the ball. The Stuttgart striker didn’t get to do too much, and even though he struggled to get involved, it wasn’t really his fault.

What took place in the second half was absolutely his fault, however. With the opposition jumping in front, the pressure was on Bosnia to score the next goal and tie things up. Their first big chance came shortly after the hour mark.

A cross flew towards the back post towards Džeko, who headed it back across to Demirović. He then headed the ball at goal, and while it looked good, the effort was denied by a superb save. The forward did well, but he could still have scored if the header was a little better.

The next opportunity was much easier, and the miss was much worse. His teammate on the right wing did brilliantly to set up the chance, cutting in on his left foot before curling a teasing cross to the far side. He picks out Demirović, who just has to redirect the ball into the back of the net from a few yards out.

He whiffs. The man who has scored tons of Bundesliga goals simply misses the ball.

Fortunately for Ermedin he is saved by his strike partner Džeko, who heads home a corner to tie things up. His luck continues when he’s gifted an opportunity to win the game in stoppage time. A cross floats over and past everyone else in the box, bouncing right in front of Demirović in a fantastic position.

He whiffs again. He was given another chance to be a hero, and he whiffed again. The number #10 had two golden opportunities to score, and both times he failed to even make contact with the ball.

That set up overtime, where he kind of just ran around for 30 minutes and offered little else. With neither side scoring in that period, the only thing left to do was to go to penalties.

This was Demirović’s final chance to somewhat redeem himself. He was going to go early in the shootout since he was a forward, and while he couldn’t win the game himself, he could at least convert from the spot. Things looked good early, as he won both coin tosses which let Bosnia go first and in front of their supporters.

The acting captain took the ball from the center circle and walked right to the penalty mark. He was the opening taker, the number one guy for his country. He was the one responsible for getting his side off to a good start.

Demirović stepped up, opened his hips, and took his shot. It was at a perfect height for the goalkeeper, at the perfect speed for the goalkeeper, and it went right at the goalkeeper. It was so incredibly telegraphed, with the effort having no conviction behind it at all. The save was simple

For a third time the striker let his team and his country down.

He proved to be the luckiest man on the field, with his fellow countrymen pulling off a comeback in the shootout. The Stuttgart man celebrated at full-time, fortunate that his woeful performance didn’t ruin everything for everyone else.

Duality of man

Demirović has not really delivered for Bosnia at any point, which is especially annoying for supporters who have seen what he can do at the club level.

In 37 appearances for the national team, he has only four goals. If that wasn’t crazy enough, only one of those goals came in a qualifying game for a major tournament. The other three took place in Nations League action, a lesser competition.

Now let’s look at his Bundesliga totals. He scored 15 goals for Augsburg in the 2023-24 season, which earned him a move to Stuttgart where he scored another 15 in his debut campaign for them. While an injury ruled him out for three months this time around he still has nine league goals to name, and another three in different tournaments.

That’s an impressive return. Bosnia should have a striker they can rely upon for goals if he’s putting up numbers like that in a major league, and yet it never translates to the international stage. Sure, there’s a little bit of a dip in the quality of teammates and system, but that doesn’t explain such a distinct difference.

Demirović is consistently outshined by an ageing Džeko, and even other attackers who get a call up provide some moments of magic, like Tabaković’s goal versus Austria or Esmir Bajraktarević’s wonderstrike against Romania. What does he have?

For a country of it’s size, Bosnia would kill for a frontman who can get them goals in the biggest and toughest games. They don’t have the options in terms of selection as other larger nations. There isn't enough talent around to build a complete team, so the big names you do have become that much more important. You have to rely on what you have.

Džeko has delivered for a decade, and that’s why he’s a national hero. As things stand, Demirović is more likely to become a villain.

While someone should always root for one of their own, it’d be hard to blame the Bosnian faithful for turning on Demirović. You’ll see him scoring for fun at times in the Bundesliga, but when he’s needed internationally, he falls short. He costs you games, and even chances at going to major tournaments. It’s only human to develop a personal annoyance.

A final chance at redemption

The striker has one more opportunity to save face and have supporters forget about all his shortcomings.

Bosnia’s final match in qualifying will be on Tuesday night at home against powerhouse Italy. That is going to be an incredibly tough test, as they’re taking on a side with more talent and more experience in games of this level and importance.

If the Dragons are to have any chance of springing an upset, they’ll need their best players performing at their best. Someone will have to step up and create something on their own. That very well should be Demirović given his own ability.

Look at who the Italians have at the back. Gianluca Mancini, Alessandro Bastoni, and Riccardo Calafiori are a truly formidable set of centerbacks, and then they have world class shot-stopper in Gianluigi Donnarumma behind them. A special moment of genius will likely be needed to get past them.

Stuttgart fans have seen glimpses of that from Demirović, and now it’s time for Bosnia fans to finally see the same. If he lets them down again, they might completely turn against him.