USA vs Bosnia-Herzegovina – Match preview and team news | OneFootball

The USA face Bosnia-Herzegovina at San Francisco Bay Area Stadium in the early hours of Thursday morning in the World Cup last 32, with a place in the round of 16 against Belgium or Senegal on the line on home soil.

Mauricio Pochettino’s side topped Group D with six points, beating Paraguay 4–1 and Australia 2–0 before rotating wholesale for a 3–2 loss to Türkiye in a dead rubber. The Stars and Stripes have not won a World Cup knockout match since 2002, and they have lost their last 12 meetings against UEFA nations.

Bosnia-Herzegovina, competing at only their second World Cup and their first as an independent nation in the knockout rounds, qualified on four points from Group B — drawing with Canada, losing heavily to Switzerland, then beating Qatar 3–1 to scrape through. A win for either side sets up a round of 16 clash against Belgium or Senegal.

USA vs Bosnia-Herzegovina – Match preview and team news

Team news

USA

Christian Pulisic returns to the starting lineup after recovering from the calf injury that kept him out of the Australia game and limited him to a substitute appearance against Türkiye. The AC Milan forward has trained normally over the past few days and Pochettino confirmed he is ready to start.

Three players face fitness assessments: Cristian Roldan (muscle), Mark McKenzie (foot) and Auston Trusty (ankle) are all doubts but none of them are projected starters. The back four of Freeman, Richards, Ream and Robinson returns from the group-stage wins, with all four yellow-card risks now cleared for selection.

Bosnia-Herzegovina

Tarik Muharemovic returns from the one-match suspension he served after being sent off against Switzerland, restoring solidity to Bosnia’s central defence. Amar Dedic is a doubt with a thigh injury and Amar Memic is expected to cover at right back should Dedic not recover in time. No other injury concerns have been reported.

Edin Džeko, 40 years old and the captain with 73 international goals, leads the attack alongside Ermedin Demirović, who has scored four times in the tournament. Set pieces represent Bosnia’s primary weapon — they have scored three goals from corners, the most at a single World Cup since England scored four in 2018.

Form

USA

Pochettino’s side were dominant in their opening two performances. The 4–1 dismantling of Paraguay — Balogun scoring twice in what marked the first time a US player scored multiple World Cup goals since 1930 — gave the tournament co-hosts the platform they needed. A controlled 2–0 win over Australia confirmed top spot.

The 3–2 defeat to Türkiye, with the squad rotated entirely, exposed defensive vulnerability among the fringe players but carried no implications for the standings. Pulisic, limited to 77 minutes across the tournament so far due to injury, is the player Pochettino has been managing towards exactly this moment.

Bosnia-Herzegovina

Sergej Barbarez’s side reached this point the hard way. Their route to the tournament required beating Italy on penalties in the European play-offs, and their group campaign mirrored that pattern of resilience and inconsistency. A draw with Canada and a 3–1 win over Qatar framed a 4–1 defeat to Switzerland in which Muharemovic’s red card effectively ended the contest.

Džeko, despite being goalless in the tournament, continues to provide the focal point that makes Bosnia’s attacking moves coherent. Kerim Alajbegović, the teenager who became one of the World Cup’s youngest scorers against Qatar, adds unpredictability from wide that the USA’s defence cannot afford to ignore.

Predicted lineups

USA predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Freese; Freeman, Richards, Ream, Robinson; Adams, Tillman; Dest, McKennie, Pulisic; Balogun

Bosnia-Herzegovina predicted XI (4-4-2): Vasilj; Memic, Katic, Muharemovic, Kolasinac; Bajraktarevic, Sunjic, Basic, Alajbegovic; Demirovic, Dzeko

How to watch USA vs Bosnia-Herzegovina?

The match will be broadcast live in the United Kingdom on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

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