The US national team knows that success in the group means nothing without reaching the cups

 In this article IRVINE, Calif. — Whatever accomplishments the U.S. team has achieved at the World Cup thus far — winning its group after two games, scoring a record eight goals in three games, galvanizing the masses, re-popularizing the song "Country Roads" — will mean nothing if the success isn't repeated in the knockout stages. Losing to Bosnia and Herzegovina in the newly created Round of 32 on Wednesday would be a total flop. Winning against Bosnia but losing in the round of 16, for example against Belgium, would be a repetition of a story familiar to everyone. Striker Folarin Balogun said on Sunday that group stage achievements "won't matter much" if the U.S. doesn't apply to continue playing. "I'm not one to look back and think, 'We did well'. That's not my approach. I'm just looking forward to Wednesday and to go and win," Balogun said. In the 96-year history of the World Cup, the USA has won only one knockout match - that was in 2002 in South Korea, when it defeated Mexico in a match between CONCACAF teams. The round of 16 in 1994, when the U.S. lost to Brazil, was expected. However, the defeats in the 1/8 finals in 2010 against Ghana (after extra time) and in 2014 against Belgium (also after extra time) were disappointing. The loss to the Netherlands in 2022 was also considered a disappointment as it was a good opportunity to get their first ever win against a European team at the World Cup. As the tournament has been expanded this year, FIFA has added a round of 16 round, which features eight third-placed group teams joining the 24 teams that finished first and second in their groups. While Bosnia and Herzegovina doesn't have the same record or scoring potential as U.S. opponents in the knockout stages in the past, they are still another European team. Since 1990, the U.S. has a 1-13-7 record against European teams at the World Cup, with its only win being a surprising win over Portugal in 2002. Since then, the US national team has not won any match against European teams at the World Championships (0-13 record). Now, in the match against Bosnia and Herzegovina, the USA is the favorite. The game will take place on Friday at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California. A win in this match will give the U.S. another match, this time in Seattle, against the winner of the Belgium-Senegal match on July 6. The U.S. national team is in much better shape at the moment, playing at home with a lot of confidence and with a squad where more than half of the players already have World Cup experience. Four years ago, the U.S. squad had only one player with World Cup experience, and the team was one of the youngest in that tournament. In the 1/8 finals, they faced the Netherlands, which was a much more experienced team and the Netherlands came out on top in this match. "We're all a little older," said Sergiño Dest, who plays left midfield. "We have a lot more experienced players at the moment. We also have some new players, but I feel that everyone is very confident and thatWe won the first two games, it gives us even more confidence." On Sunday, the U.S. national team resumed training in California. Most of the players participated in training and the staff is in good health. In the last group match against Turkey, in which the USA won 3-0, coach Mauricio Pochettino spared most of his basic players. The only player to play in all three group games is midfielder Weston McKennie. Pochettino will most likely use in the match against Bosnia and Herzegovina those players who played in the first match against Paraguay, which the USA won 4-1. Christian Pulisic is in very good shape this season, but in recent matches he was spared by the coach due to minor injuries. However, he had a short trial period in the last group match and showed that he was in excellent form. The health situation in the US national team camp is currently uncertain in the case of two players: Auston Trusty and Cristian Roldan. Both did not take part in training on Sunday. Trusty suffered an ankle injury in the last match and is unsure whether he will play in the match against Bosnia. Roldan, on the other hand, has a muscle injury and has not trained for the last week. In defense, the coach has a few more options. Mark McKenzie, who played in the last group match, has minor health problems, but according to information from the national team camp, he should be ready to play. --- ## Related Articles 1. [World Cup 2026](https://pitchpulsemedia.com/en/news/how-to-watch-the-world-cup-today-schedule-times-tv-streaming-for-brazil-norway-mexico-england) 2. [World Cup 2026](https://azkalsgoal.com/fil/news/thomas-tuchel-england-handang-handa-sa-presyon-mula-sa-mga-tagahanga-ng-mexico-sa-world-cup-2026)