The United States had defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0 in the Round of 32 to advance in the knockout stage for the first time in over 20 years.

The match was marked by poor refereeing against the United States, with a number of calls inexplicably going against the USNMT, including a late no-card foul against Christian Pulisic on a clear goal-scoring opportunity to close out the first half. The poor calling of the match culminated in a red card for the rising star striker Folarin Balogun that put the U.S. down to 10 men for the last third of the match.

https://x.com/USMNT/status/2072502360400916969

Despite the adversity from the officiating, the USMNT was led by the stellar offensive effort of Balogun’s first half performance. Balogun created a number of quality opportunities to score, but did not manage to secure a goal until the 45th minute. He has scored one-third of the U.S.’s total goals of the World Cup campaign, and is sitting tied at eighth for most goals scored at this point in the tournament.

Despite being forced to play short-handed, the USMNT chose to increase the aggression and managed to score the goal of the tournament for the U.S. off of a free kick just outside of the box in the 82nd minute. Malik Tillman took the kick and scored a world-class goal over the wall and into the left side of the net.

Balogun’s red card means that he will be suspended for the U.S.’s upcoming match against Belgium in the Round of 16. Their match is slated for Monday, July 6.

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