Matt Freese ’22 and USMNT Shut Out Bosnia and Herzegovina, Advance to Round of 16

In the lead-up to the Fourth of July and the United States’ 250th anniversary celebration, the United States Men’s National Team delivered fireworks in a Round of 32 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina.

USMNT goalkeeper Matt Freese ’22, however, kept the Bosnian offense from igniting, posting his second straight clean sheet while playing much of the second half a man down.

Playing a man down was unfamiliar territory for Freese and the United States Men’s National Team — the U.S. hadn’t received a red card in the World Cup since 2006.

That changed when United States striker Folarin Balogun was sent off in the 64th minute for a challenge that landed on the back of defender Tarik Muharemović’s ankle.

The call didn’t break the U.S. team’s patriotic spirit. Instead, the Americans powered home a second goal — this time off midfielder Malik Tillman’s free kick — and won a knockout game for the first time since the 2002 World Cup.

Bosnia and Herzegovina entered the match with strong familiarity with the pressures of win-or-go-home games. The team defeated both Wales and Italy, a four-time World Cup champion, to advance from the qualification play-offs. Bosnia and Herzegovina then claimed a must-win game against Qatar in the group stage to take one of eight third-place qualifying spots in the inaugural Round of 32 at the World Cup.

The United States entered having not won a World Cup knockout game since 2002 — and was winless against European opponents, with 11 losses and two draws since its 2021 friendly win over Bosnia.

Alongside nine other U.S. teammates who had started the previous game, Freese — who started the other group stage matches against Paraguay and Australia — was benched for the final matchup against Turkey.

Despite the United States having previously clinched its group, head coach Mauricio Pochettino faced questions over his decision to rotate his lineup — to rest his starters and protect players on a yellow card from suspension — in its final group stage match against Turkey.

The Americans lost 3-2 to Turkey on a last-minute goal, raising questions about whether the United States could maintain the momentum from its first two wins in the elimination rounds.

Despite New England Revolution goalie Matt Turner starting against Turkey, Freese reclaimed the spot in the net for the United States’ first knockout game.

In his first two matches, Freese recorded just three saves and faced little adversity, as the U.S. cruised to commanding wins over both foes. However, a tall Bosnian front line was poised to give Freese his toughest test yet.

A long ball downfield from a goal kick found Bosnian star striker Edin Džeko, but Freese punched it out to America’s captain Tim Ream, who cleared the ball for a corner. With the save, Freese survived his first test — which again came early in the match.

Freese went on to make another three saves in the contest.

Despite America’s efforts, Bosnia and Herzegovina continued to pressure the net and got one of its best looks of the night off a corner kick. Challenged by the sun, Freese appeared to momentarily lose sight of an inswinging ball from the corner that curved toward the goal. Luckily for the hosts, a quick readjustment enabled Freese to earn his second save of the night, appearing to settle into the game.

Other than Freese’s hot start, the United States started slowly in comparison to its group stage matches, in which it had scored by the 11th minute in all three games.

After maintaining 60 percent of possession throughout the first twenty minutes, pressure from midfielder Weston McKennie against Bosnia’s defenders forced a deep turnover that led to a Balogun goal — though the attempt was immediately ruled offside.

Though Bosnia averaged roughly 43 percent possession throughout the group stage of the tournament, it struggled to retain possession in the first half. The visitors’ clearances consistently landed at the feet of American players. The Bosnian side also tactically opted for a more defensive approach to start the game, employing a 5-3-2 formation instead of the 4-4-2 strategy it used throughout the group stage.

After a couple of near misses and offside erasures, the United States broke through in the 45th minute.

Tillman played a through ball, and, with the help of a deflection from a Bosnian defender, Balogun gained control at the top of the box. Switching the ball to his left foot in traffic, the striker slid a shot through the goalkeeper’s legs for a goal — tallying his third of the tournament. Now, Balogun is just one off Bert Patenaude’s record for most goals scored by an American in a single World Cup.

Near the end of first-half stoppage time, defender Sergiño Dest bounced a header toward Balogun, though Bosnian pressure forced him to fire the ball narrowly over the crossbar.

Despite its advantage on the scoreboard, the USMNT proceeded to lose its leading goalscorer — Balogun.

In a devastating blow to the home team, a 64th-minute VAR review of a defensive challenge by the American striker resulted in a red card, leaving the team to play the rest of the game with only 10 players. Even more critically, the card ensured that Balogun would miss the team’s next match against Belgium in the Round of 16.

The card put heightened pressure on Freese due to the United States’ player disadvantage. A shot through the legs of defender Chris Richards forced the keeper to make a critical save in the 65th minute, and Freese again had to calmly collect another shot just two minutes later.

A foul just outside the box in the 82nd minute provided the United States with an opportunity to seal the match.

Tillman did just that — curling a free kick past the defensive wall and the Bosnian goalkeeper for a 2-0 lead.

The visiting team did not exit the game quietly, though, and continued to push the ball towards the net. A long-distance shot that barely missed Freese’s bottom right post, and play got increasingly chippy in the midfield. On one attempt, Freese advanced in the penalty box in an attempt to punch out a ball but missed. Luckily for the Americans, the defense managed to gain control of the situation and prevent Bosnia from mounting a comeback.

Soon after, the referee blew the final whistle, and the United States joined its fellow hosts, Mexico and Canada, in the Round of 16.

The USMNT will return to action next Monday against Belgium, with the winner earning a coveted spot in the quarterfinals.

In March, America fell 5-2 in a friendly contest against the Red Devils and, in its last World Cup matchup against Belgium, lost in the 2014 Round of 16, despite an iconic record-setting 16-save performance by then-U.S. goalie Tim Howard to send the match into extra time.

The Belgium side enters the match as a top-10 team in the FIFA rankings but has not played up to that billing so far in the tournament and needed two late goals to push Senegal to extra time before winning on a controversial penalty shot in its Round of 32 matchup Wednesday afternoon.

The Round of 16 matchup will kick off on Monday at 8:00 p.m. EDT in Seattle, Wash., where the United States clinched first place in its group almost two weeks ago.

—Staff writer Uy B. Pham can be reached at [email protected] or on Signal at ubp.88. Follow him on X @uybpham.

—Staff writer Jason Deng can be reached at [email protected].

—Staff writer Nghia L. Nguyen can be reached at [email protected].