IRVINE, Calif. — For all the U.S. World Cup achievements thus far — winning the group after two matches, scoring a program-record eight goals over three games, energizing the masses, repopularizing “Country Roads” — nothing will matter if success does not continue in the knockout stage.
Lose to Bosnia and Herzegovina in the newly created Round of 32 on Wednesday, and this tournament is an abject failure. Beat the Bosnians but fall in the Round of 16 to perhaps Belgium, well, we’ve seen that movie before.
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Striker Folarin Balogun said Sunday that the group stage “won’t mean much” unless the U.S. makes a run.
“I’m not somebody who would look back and think, ‘We’ve done well.’ That’s not really my mentality,” he said. “I’m just looking forward to Wednesday, and looking forward to going out and winning.”
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In the World Cup’s 96-year history, the U.S. has won one knockout match — and that came in an all-Concacaf showdown with Mexico in 2002 in South Korea.
The 1994 Round-of-16 defeat to eventual champion Brazil was expected. Elimination at the same stage in 2010 to Ghana in extra time was disappointing and the 2014 and 2022 exits to Belgium (in extra time) and the Netherlands, respectively, were missed opportunities for a breakthrough moment against a European elite.
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Because the tournament expanded this year, FIFA added the Round-of-32 layer, which includes eight third-place teams joining the 24 first- and second-place finishers.
Although Bosnia and Herzegovina doesn’t feature the pedigree or firepower of past U.S. opponents in the knockout stage, it is another European foe.
Since 1990, the USA’s overall record against such opponents at World Cups is 1-13-7, the win a shocker against Portugal to begin the 2002 campaign. Since that upset, it has gone 13 games without a victory against the continent.
Now comes favored status against a third-place qualifier at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California. With a victory, the Americans would head to Seattle to face the Belgium-Senegal winner on July 6.
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The U.S. is in a stronger position than ever before, playing at home with soaring confidence and half the roster boasting World Cup experience. Four years ago, the Americans had one player who’d been to a World Cup and one of the youngest squads in the competition. Their naivete was glaring against the seasoned Dutch in the knockout phase.
“We all are a little bit older,” right wing Sergiño Dest said. “We’ve got a lot more experienced players at the moment. We also got some new players, but I feel like everybody’s really confident, and it helps if you win the first two games and you get first in the group. Everybody’s so confident, so we just have a lot of belief we can do it.”
Loose and lively Sunday morning, the U.S. resumed regular workouts at breezy Great Park Sports Complex. Training will continue Monday at the same venue before the delegation flies to the San Jose area that afternoon.
(Jamie Squire via Getty Images)
The Americans will arrive in the Bay Area fresh and relatively healthy. Clinching Group D so early allowed coach Mauricio Pochettino to rest most of his first-choice players in the finale against Türkiye on Thursday.
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Midfielder Weston McKennie was the only player to start every group match. All but five of the 26 started at least once and just seven appeared in all three games. McKennie was the only one to log more than 200 minutes.
Pochettino is expected to summon the starters from the impressive opener, a 4-1 rout of Paraguay on June 12. Saddled by a calf injury, Christian Pulisic has not started since that first match but, as a 32-minute sub against Türkiye, he was vibrant and dangerous.
A healthier USMNT
Injury concerns Sunday centered on two reserves, defender Auston Trusty and defensive midfielder Cristian Roldan. Both were relegated to work with the training and medical staff.
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Trusty started at left back and scored against Türkiye but hurt his left ankle in the closing minutes.
A probable starter had he been healthy for that match, Roldan was shelved because of a quadriceps strain that sidelined him all week.
Center back Mark McKenzie, who made his World Cup debut by starting the group closer, sat out practice Sunday with foot irritation but was expected to return Monday, a U.S. Soccer Federation spokesman said.
Trusty and McKenzie provide backline depth behind starters Chris Richards, Tim Ream and Alex Freeman. With the group clinched and Richards carrying a yellow card, none of the trio started against Türkiye. Only Freeman entered as a sub.
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Balogun, defensive midfielder Tyler Adams, left wing back Antonee Robinson also sat out to guard against a yellow card suspension for the Round of 32. Yellow cards were erased from a player’s portfolio after the group stage.
Despite the loss Thursday, vibes remain high in U.S. camp and, entering win-or-go-home matches, the focus has narrowed.
“I can feel the difference in just the atmosphere,” Balogun said. “It’s knockout football, so you lose, you go home, so for me it has a change in my mindset and mentality, as well. Not that I wasn’t taking it seriously before, but you can just go into another gear, because you want it more, and I don’t want the journey to end.”
