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The U.S. men’s national team will face Bosnia and Herzegovina in the World Cup’s Round of 32 in the Bay Area on Wednesday night. Ahead of the matchup, Front Office Sports caught up with longtime Fox Sports host Rob Stone to ask about what the common fan (such as this author) should be looking for in the matchup and beyond.
Front Office Sports: If people are just parachuting in for the knockout stage with the USMNT, what are some key players and trends to know about going into the Bosnia game?
Rob Stone: They have been electric from the start, getting goals in the first 10 minutes in all three group games. They’re scoring goals, they’re taking players on 1v1, they’re playing with a passion, and they are playing with a style that can completely resonate with the American fan.
It’s hustling, it’s speed, it’s active, it’s fun, it’s passionate. Folarin Balogun has been a revelation. He had two goals in the opening game against Paraguay. He’s been an absolute, legitimate scoring threat that our nation has been craving for years.
Christian Pulisic and his battle with his calf injury has been a subplot. He started the first game but could only play 45 minutes but was super impactful. He was able to come back in Game 3 against Turkey for just over half an hour and again show that he’s an absolute difference maker.
Most of us are expecting him to start against Bosnia, and curious to see what his energy and excitement level are going to be having basically been stuck on the bench and rehabbing through the early heart of this World Cup tournament.
FOS: What do you think is making this team gel compared to how it had been doing in recent years?
RS: That’s a good one. As cohosts, the U.S., Canada, and Mexico didn’t have to qualify. They were automatically in, which means the qualification process was taken from them. Those are the moments, the trips, the situations, the stress that those players are put under that really galvanize a team—and you find out quickly who’s cut out for it, who isn’t, who you can rely on, and how certain people manage these situations.
With that taken away, there was precious little opportunity for this U.S. team to really find a place to steel themselves and I think they figured it out with the last two tune-ups, that were against World Cup opponents, and they looked and said, “We also have this fan base behind us, which isn’t always the case,” whether that’s in America or wherever they travel.
I think the timing worked out great. It’s not how you start, it’s where you finish, and they’re starting very well where the confidence is going. But it’s clear there’s another gear, and it’s clear that this team has kind of figured out who they are as a unit.
FOS: In an NBA playoff series, they always talk about how they’ll be won or lost based on which role players step up. Who are some of those players who can make or break the USMNT performance?
RS: I think it’s hard to call anyone a “role player,” but I understand the parallel. Somebody like Malik Tillman has been absolutely lights out. The deep, dark soccer nerds get it and respect it and have seen it. He has been an absolute rock in the midfield. He’s done everything that’s been asked of him, whether on offense or defense, or lifting up teammates, or grinding assaults to a halt.
I think he’s been one of those guys who haven’t been getting a lot of attention, but those in the locker room or those in the manager’s office know damn well how important he’s been.
FOS: The new coach Mauricio Pochettino—what should people know about his backstory?
RS: Well, he looks like Russell Crowe, isn’t that enough?
FOS: [Laughing] From a soccer perspective … Celebrity doppelganger notwithstanding.
RS: Well isn’t that important?
He comes from Argentina, he represented his nation on the World Cup level, he has coached major clubs throughout Europe [Chelsea, PSG, Tottenham]. He is a respected figure in soccer. The fact that the U.S. was able to get him and get him to coach his first national team was a real coup.
There was a learning curve for him, not only transitioning from club to national coach, but also to understand what America is and what the American player is. I think he saw it last summer at the Gold Cup when the last two games for the U.S. were in St. Louis and Houston—and the U.S. was the road team.
He was baffled by it. He could not understand it. I think there was this moment where he understood what the American player has gone through, and became sympathetic to it but also energized to try and change that narrative.
We forget that so many times, this team can be a visitor in their own country. That hasn’t been the case this summer and it certainly wasn’t the case in ‘94, and I think he’s relishing this opportunity show off the best attributes of these American players to the American fan, and bring them into the tent and let them know they’re welcome and should stay there as long as they want to be.
FOS: Besides the scoreboard, what should fans be looking for to determine whether the game against Bosnia is going well or poorly?
RS: Look at how the U.S. is doing out wide, whether it’s on the left or right side. If they’re touching that sideline and there’s a player there and they’re attacking it constantly, that means things are going well. This is where the U.S. has been so strong in the last couple weeks—being ambitious and adventuresome and taking players on 1v1 which is the greatest thing you can do to break down a defense. That has been one of the unheralded strengths of this U.S. team this summer.
FOS: If the U.S. loses to Bosnia, is this considered a success since they played so well to open the group stage? Or is it a failure because they didn’t reach the round of 16 on their home turf?
RS: I think it would be more on the failure side. You play the World Cup to get through the three group-stage games and get to this dance, which is where you really shine. The U.S. has higher aspirations than just getting out of the group and getting to the round of 32.
They would be disappointed, we would be disappointed. And they know that! This comes with the territory. Look what happened to Japan and Germany just Monday. They got bumped in the round of 32. Anything can happen, but when you step back from it and look at what the U.S. was expecting of themselves in this tournament, they would tell you round of 32 was just the beginning.
FOS: What is the common fan need to know about Bosnia’s team going into this matchup?
RS: Some fans back in Bosnia created this awesome World Cup song for them and the lyrics go, “I’m from Bosnia, take me to America, take me to Golden Gate, I will assimilate.”
That’s all you need to know [laughs …]
Also, the struggles that the people from this country have gone through, the difficulties that they’ve had to advance not just in international soccer but in the general international landscape as well—they defeated Italy to get to the World Cup. This is a proud country and proud players and they have no intentions of wilting to this U.S. team at all.
