USMNT’s press shocks Europe—Bosnia is the test

USMNT counter-press – Heading into their last-32 tie against Bosnia-Herzegovina, the United States is drawing praise for a counter-press that Jurgen Klinsmann calls “the best U.S. team in many, many years.” But the same intensity that built momentum after a 4-1 win over Paraguay is

The night feels different at a World Cup when the crowd starts believing before the final whistle. In the United States’ last-32 tie against Bosnia-Herzegovina, the noise won’t just be about what comes next—it’s about what already happened, and how quickly it changed minds.

For Jurgen Klinsmann, the turning point is unmistakable. He points to the opening 4-1 win over Paraguay and says: “For us coaches, what was highly impressive was how they set the bar against Paraguay in the first 45 minutes.” He adds, “It was the best U.S. team in many, many years.”

That early statement matters more than it did when it was fresh. The scoreboard flash from Paraguay now looks even sharper because Paraguay later knocked out Germany to reach the last 16. And the United States is heading into this knockout moment with context hanging over it: in the modern era. the U.S. has escaped the group stage of a men’s World Cup four times. but has never made it beyond the quarter-finals.

On the eve of the Bosnia-Herzegovina match, excitement is meeting expectation with a kind of public tenderness—fans want a breakthrough, but the football world is still weighing how far this squad can realistically go.

Brazil legend Kaka has already convinced himself. Before a ball was kicked, he told The Athletic that the U.S. would reach the semi-final: “The U.S. men’s national team will reach the semi-final. because of the excitement. the motivation — I think that’s a big. big. ingredient that can help and will be very positive for the U.S. team.” Kaka won the 2002 tournament with Brazil as a squad player, and also reached quarter-finals with Brazil in 2006 and 2010. Even with those credentials. his message was simple: “Good team. good players. very good coach. so I think the U.S. team is ready to achieve at least the semi-final.”.

Not everyone is buying the momentum so easily. Philipp Lahm—the captain of the Germany side that won the World Cup in 2014. and part of third-place campaigns in 2006 and 2010—frames it as a question of geography and atmosphere. “My honest expectation is that the support from the home crowd could carry them through to the quarter-finals.” Rio Ferdinand. who reached the quarter-finals with England in 2002 and 2006. sounds less confident about the end point but clearer about the feeling inside the games: “They’re playing with energy and emotion. I’d be surprised if they get to the semi-finals, it depends on their route. I don’t think there were any big hopes for them going into the tournament. but I think they’ve exceeded expectations already.”.

Ferdinand also points to how the U.S. has approached matches in a way he believes Americans can be proud of: “They’re a team that America can be proud of, in the way that they’ve approached the games, which is important.”

There are others who think the whole story could tip—because emotion, they warn, is not a system. Rene Meulensteen, who has been in the U.S. as a coach with Iraq and previously served as Sir Alex Ferguson’s assistant at Manchester United. is blunt about the limits. “Listen, at the end of the day, America is playing on a lot of emotion as the host country. That only gets you so far.” He says Bosnia are beatable. and even sketches what could happen if the U.S. is pushed deep: “If they reach the last-16 I could see them beating Belgium (potential opponents). I think that’s an even contest, it could go to extra-time and penalties. Belgium are not firing on all cylinders, but you would think they have a few more difference makers.”.

Then he flips the lens to how far the tournament would have to go for this story to become something almost unreal: “If America make it to the semis it would an absolute miracle. That is when the big teams galvanise. You will see the strength of France soon. We played France, they have got the biggest ammunition of all teams at the World Cup. USA would face them in the semi-finals, if they get that far.”.

Jay DeMerit, who made the last-16 with the U.S. in 2010 after drawing with England in the group stages. lands closer to the dream but still keeps a foot in football reality. “I think the U.S can go to the quarters for sure. Bosnia is a very winnable game. and the next one potentially too.” He adds that knockout football can swing because matches are rarely tidy. “You never know. We have seen in the last-32 already teams can stick in it, teams miss chances, things happen in football. The point is getting there. Having a homefield advantage will help anybody.”.

The homefield advantage is visible in the stadiums, and the images have become part of the story. The SoFi has twice been packed out with fans wearing various stars-and-stripes garments, while Lumen Field in Seattle brought joyous scenes as the U.S. clinched progress by beating Australia.

That atmosphere hasn’t always been the baseline. After the U.S. went out in the group stage at the 2024 Copa America—triggering the dismissal of Gregg Berhalter—the SoFi was largely empty during a 2025 CONCACAF Nations League semi-final loss to Panama under Pochettino.

Even last September, when the U.S. played a friendly against South Korea at the Red Bull Arena in New Jersey, U.S. fans were significantly outnumbered by opposition supporters. The match finished 2-0 to South Korea.

But the story connected to that shift goes beyond crowd noise. and it circles back to a tactical tweak Pochettino made at a moment that could have looked like experimentation. In the South Korea game, at half-time, Pochettino switched to a back-five system. He made substitutions and continued with that plan against Japan in a 2-0 win.

Over the past year, results have been mixed. The U.S. drew with Ecuador, beat Australia, Paraguay and Uruguay, and lost to Belgium and Portugal 2-0. Leading into the tournament, they beat Senegal 3-2 and lost to Germany 2-1.

What has changed isn’t just the scoreline. It’s how the team looks when it doesn’t have the ball.

Pochettino’s shape is flexible. and it’s built around specific roles: Alex Freeman can be a right-back and tuck inside to play the right centre-back role in possession; Sergino Dest pushes on from wing-back to right winger; Antonee Robinson slots back from his left-back position. Predominantly, it maps as a 4-3-3 that turns into a 3-2-5 in possession. Christian Pulisic’s injury brought striker Ricardo Pepi into the line-up for the Australia game. making it more like a 3-5-2. while Pochettino’s 10 changes for the dead rubber against Turkey made that match harder to judge.

Klinsmann doesn’t just praise the team’s willingness to chase—it’s the structure behind the chasing. He watched the Paraguay and Turkey games at the SoFi and is part of FIFA’s Technical Study Group. “The counter-press that he played is very logical,” he says. “That’s what we coaches when we are together discuss: what is the most efficient way. when to do it and what formation you do it in?. Are you pushing them to the sides?. Are you doing it all over the field?. Are you going man against man all over the field?”.

He describes it with a vivid metaphor: “I call it always squeezing the lemon in a certain way. Once they lose the ball, it’s: ‘OK, I’ve got to squeeze their opponent in order to win it back’.”

Klinsmann ties that intensity directly to what fans saw against Paraguay. “And so now everything happens on a much lesser space and it’s fascinating,” he says. He compares it to a game he watched last year in Atlanta between Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain in the Club World Cup. where counter-pressing looked relentless “until you basically get knocked over and completely exhausted.” For the U.S. he says. confidence comes from the same belief: “I think the U.S. team is capable to do that.”.

It’s a confidence that comes with a question attached. DeMerit and others want to know what happens when pressure becomes physical, when the opponent doesn’t collapse the way Paraguay did, and when legs run out.

One challenge is straightforward: can the U.S. keep their composure and stick to the plan under the pressure of a World Cup knockout game. “One challenge for the U.S. players will be if they can keep their cool and stick to the plan under the pressure of a World Cup knockout game. particularly when confronted by a physical and hard-running Bosnia side that eliminated four-times winners Italy in qualifying.”.

There are also worries behind the scenes about whether the press can last the full 90 minutes, and whether the squad has the depth to maintain it when the match tilts or when a chase turns into defending.

Pochettino made nine changes for the final group game, and the U.S. was beaten by Turkey, a team already eliminated after losing its opening two games. Meulensteen points to defensive issues in that result: “Conceding three shows they have some defensive issues, even accounting for the changes.”

Others treat Turkey as its own separate chapter. DeMerit says: “The performances so far have been right on par with what we’d expect based on opponents.” He describes the changes as deliberate and fitness-focused: “The U.S. has firepower and brought that in all three games. Third one was about changes. get guys some fitness. a run-out. I don’t see anything wrong with that; smart move. I would have made the same changes that Pochettino did.”.

Lahm says he isn’t drawing heavy conclusions from that defeat because of the rotation. “That came with a heavily changed side, so I don’t read much into it,” he says. “The organisation, the physical level, the way they’ve been set up — all of it has been close to what I expected.”

The counter-press itself helps explain why opinions are so divided. In FIFA’s terms, it’s the desire to win the ball back quickly after losing it—pressure designed to prevent the opposition from escaping from its own defensive third.

The Paraguay opener offers the clearest snapshot. As a U.S. attack breaks down and the ball bounces loose inside the penalty area. those not involved in the attack position themselves to pen Paraguay in. Freeman hangs back while Weston McKennie and Dest crash into the penalty area. Tyler Adams holds his position. while Robinson tucks inside from left-back. forming a net of players on the edge of the penalty area to make it difficult for Paraguay to escape.

Miguel Almiron tries to bring the ball out, but has only one forward pass. Even though he can bypass the three-man wall, centre-back Chris Richards steps up with instant pressure, forcing a turnover that allows the U.S. to attack again.

When counter-pressing lands with intensity, the effect is visible—Paraguay in that moment struggled to catch their breath. Meulensteen summed it up: “I thought they were good versus Paraguay and Australia. High press, good counter press too; created plenty of chances and scored some good goals.”

Tom Gardner, lead of Football Performance Insights at FIFA, argues the structure isn’t coincidence. “The USA are a real outlier as a team who spend a lot of time in the counter-press phase and a high proportion of their out-of-possession time in counter-press phase. ” he says. “So nearly every time they lose the ball they’re really trying hard to get into a counter-press and regain possession as quickly as they can.” Gardner says there’s a link he’s seeing: “What’s really interesting is we’re seeing a strong link between teams who are counter-pressing. regaining quickly. and success.”.

Pablo Zabaleta, who started the 2014 World Cup final for Argentina, connects the U.S. approach to how teams prepare to press—structure, build-up, and reaction. He believes Canada and Spain are similar. “We’re talking about structure, how they build-up and have a philosophy of playing with the short passes,” he says. “They create that structure that allows them, when they lose the ball, to counter-press very quickly.”.

He adds the part that matters most during a match: “But that comes from the players, how they switch in those situations, how they react instead of dropping back and then being compact and defending low block.”

Zabaleta says the U.S. wins the ball high enough to turn the press into attacking threat close to the goal: “You can really see how players counter-press quickly, winning the ball in the opposition half which allowed them to counter-attack in the proximity to the opposition goal.”

Lahm frames the reason for that competence in terms of European training. saying the team is “in effect. a European-schooled side.” He lists a spine of players with clubs across Europe: Pulisic at Milan. Richards at Crystal Palace but schooled at Bayern Munich. Dest at PSV after coming through Ajax. Joe Scally at Monchengladbach. and McKennie at Juventus. He believes Pochettino doesn’t have to reinvent the game for them. “So. when an experienced coach like Pochettino takes charge — a man who has managed top European clubs like Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain — he barely has to explain anything. ” Lahm says. “The mechanisms of his system — and he plays with a back three — are not new ground for these players; they live them every week. He has simply let them play to his concept.”.

Lahm also points to an American quality that sits on top of that training: “What sits on top of that European grounding is the mentality you always associate with the U.S. and Canada: enormous running capacity, real physical presence, a genuine fighting spirit. At times that can tip into being a little headless. but you see the same in plenty of European sides too.”.

He sees the Australia match as the clearest example of that physicality and organisation. “The Australia game was the clearest illustration. It was brutal in terms of running intensity and physicality from both teams, and the U.S. were well organised in it.” His conclusion is that the U.S. is close to something European. “That is why I would say they are not really far away from a European team now.”.

Klinsmann, meanwhile, ties the advantage to where players are developing. “In my time, I was just happy when they were in Europe, not only playing in Europe!” he says. “I didn’t have any Champions League players. but now you have players playing for AC Milan. Juventus. and Marseille. and you can see that.”.

Even the team’s striker story has become a source of reassurance. Folarin Balogun, who came through at Arsenal and is now at Monaco, is leading the U.S. forward line and scored twice against Paraguay. He played 90 minutes in the Australia game before being rested against Turkey.

Ferdinand calls Balogun the standout. “Balogun has done great,” he says. “I think he’s been the standout. He’s dynamic and scored goals. He’s been a No 9 they definitely have needed.” DeMerit agrees. “The player so far I have liked the most is Balogun. He is such a threat. He has an air of confidence that we haven’t seen in a U.S. No 9 in a while.” He says the U.S. needs that confidence to win late-round matches: “To win these games in the later rounds you need someone like that. To put the ball in the net when you get limited chances. He is that true No 9 that we have been lacking.”.

Kaka points to Pulisic as well. speaking pre-tournament before a calf injury sidelined Pulisic from half-time of the USMNT’s opening game to the second half of the final group match. “I like him – a very, very good player,” Kaka says. “McKennie who has played for Juve for a lot of years, is playing a high level. So they have good players, playing at good teams.”.

Meulensteen says Tim Ream matters too. “Obviously Pulisic is important to them but so is Tim Ream, captain and leader,” he adds. Ferdinand also makes the broader case that attacking options and confidence have helped the team.

Yet even as the press and the attacking threat earn praise, the side’s relationship with pressure—media pressure, stadium pressure, match pressure—still shows up.

After the Turkey game. Pochettino was irritable in his press conference. repeatedly asking reporters why nobody had congratulated him for making the last-32 with the U.S. as group winners rather than delving into the defeat. Meulensteen says he understands the basics: “What has Pochettino got to be irritated about?. You get through to the next round, there you go.” Ferdinand disagrees with how he reads it. “I understand where Pochettino is coming from,” Ferdinand says.

“You’ve lost a game but finished top of the group, (and) what are we talking about?. I think. get some realism to the situation.” He adds a softer explanation for the tone: “I absolutely agree with Pochettino. I think he reacts to the energy in the room, and the line of questioning puts him in that space. I don’t think he goes in there with that intention because I don’t think he would have had

the questions beforehand. Then he gets the questions, he goes, ‘Hold on a minute, we finished top of the group.’”.

DeMerit offers a wider reassurance: “I’m not gonna lie — like most people I had questions. but I look at team performance. mental performance. the way these guys are rallying for each other. on their own. not necessarily due to the manager. A good manager lets guys do that on their own.” He draws a comparison between Pochettino and Carlo Ancelotti. “Look at Carlo Ancelotti. He is one of those managers where he sets the table and let’s the players do the work. I think Pochettino has got that air about him right now. It’s looking like it’s working.”.

There’s also the question of what comes after the tournament, and that uncertainty sits over the current excitement. The Athletic revealed last week that the United States Soccer Federation has presented Pochettino with a proposal to extend for a second World Cup cycle. People close to the USMNT players say Pochettino is a popular coach and impressed the squad with his plans and how his ideas play out in games. But there is less certainty about whether he will extend his stay, and what would happen if he departs.

For now, the football can’t wait for contract talk.

Ferdinand says a strong U.S. matters beyond the team itself. “The longer they stay in the tournament, the better for everyone,” he says. “In other countries, I think everyone’s engaged anyway, but here I think if they go out the level of attention drops.”

Klinsmann follows the games with six to eight coaches and sometimes up to 20 data analysts. Within two hours of the final whistle, they build a report in a detailed way and try to spot trends.

His verdict before Bosnia is both encouraging and cautionary. “Is there stuff that they should improve from what we saw in the Turkey game?. Absolutely. but it’s a different team because there were so many changes and you can’t really compare it.” He says the rotation helped: “It’s a fantastic situation that they were already qualified as a group winner after the second game because it gave them the luxury to rest players.” Then the tone changes—because that protection is over. “But that is all over now. It’s done. You’re only as good as your next game and this now opens a new chapter for this impressive. fairly young American team.”.

Bosnia-Herzegovina will be the next sentence in that chapter. If the U.S. can keep turning ball losses into pressure, and pressure into chances—without letting the intensity burn them out—then the debate over miracles and semi-finals won’t feel like talk. It will feel like math.

USMNT Bosnia-Herzegovina Pochettino Jurgen Klinsmann counter-press World Cup 2026 Paraguay Turkey Ricardo Pepi Christian Pulisic Folarin Balogun Tim Ream