Folarin Balogun scored his third goal of the World Cup before being sent off in the second half, while Malik Tillman added a late free-kick as 10-man United States defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0 on Wednesday to book a place in the round of 16.
Balogun was the standout performer in the opening half, breaking the deadlock and creating several other scoring opportunities as the United States dominated the early stages of the match.
The Americans were reduced to 10 men in the 64th minute when Balogun received a red card following a foul on Tarik Muharemovic, forcing them to defend their lead for the remainder of the contest.
Tillman sealed the victory in the 82nd minute, curling a free kick from just outside the penalty area that slipped past goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj after taking a slight deflection off his hand.
That gave the US just its second World Cup knockout round win. The Americans made it to the semifinals in the first tournament in 1930 by winning their group and won a round of 16 matchup against Mexico in 2002.
The win over Bosnia in the round of 32 in this year’s expanded tournament sets up a matchup on Monday in Seattle against Belgium as the U.S. hopes to make a deep run on home soil.
The game was played less than 20 miles from the site of the first U.S. knockout round game of the modern era when the Americans lost 1-0 to heavily favored Brazil at Stanford Stadium in 1994.
Source: Dunya News
