The second round of group stage fixtures is about to get underway and in Group B, Switzerland will face Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Group B Status
Each team in Group B is currently tied on one point after the first round of games. Switzerland drew 1-1 with Qatar while Bosnia drew 1-1 with Canada.
That makes this a huge clash, between the two teams who are regarded as the strongest in this group. Switzerland face World Cup co-hosts Canada in their last game, in Vancouver, so will want to wrap up qualification with a win in Los Angeles.
Bosnia Outlook
Bosnia were impressive against Canada, no one more so than Sead Kolasinac. But he did limp off late on, and will be worried about the prospect of missing the game against Switzerland.
On Switzerland, Bosnia manager Sergej Barbarez said: “They are a very strong national team. There are players who play at a high level, for big European clubs. Switzerland will certainly be one of the toughest opponents in this tournament.
“The team has a serious system, quality players and stability that many national teams lack. Switzerland is a serious European national team, respected by everyone.”
For the Bosnians, it remains to be seen how much Edin Džeko will be used in this tournament. The 40-year-old was an unused substitute against Canada, but is undoubtedly still Bosnia’s biggest goal threat.
He scored six league goals for Schalke last season, in only six starts. He has been struggling with his fitness levels, and the heat in America certainly won’t be ideal, which is likely why he wasn’t put on the pitch in the first game.
Bosnia are unbeaten in their last nine games, and haven’t lost a game since September last year.
Switzerland Outlook
For Switzerland, it was a disappointing first game against Qatar. They took the lead in the 17th minute through Breel Embolo’s spot kick and looked set to see out the win, until Qatar ruined that in the 94th minute.
Swiss midfielder Miro Muheim scored an unfortunate own goal in the last minute to see his side drop two points. Manager Murat Yakin was disappointed at his side’s missed chances during the game, and said they cannot be so wasteful.
“I can’t fault the team’s performance. If you look at the stats, we had 26 shots today, but we were just giving their keeper some catching practice. I think we need to be more clinical in front of goal.
“With Muheim, we were hoping he’d bring some fresh energy. Unfortunately, he looks a bit unlucky on the goal we conceded, but I don’t blame him.
“In the end, we weren’t able to execute what we wanted. If we concede a goal in the very last play, we didn’t defend well.” Yakin is satisfied with his starting lineup. “I’d line up the team exactly the same way again. As for the substitutions, I need to go over the books and analyze whether I did everything right there.”
Takeaway & Match Details
There is a lot riding on the game between Switzerland and Bosnia, and both teams will feel aggrieved that they didn’t come out of their opening games with wins.
The match is taking place in Los Angeles, with a kickoff time of 3:00pm ET / noon PT.
