Mauricio Pochettino brushed off talk of a special United States problem against European teams on Wednesday, saying the run of defeats was probably a coincidence as his side prepared to meet Bósnia in the round of 16. The match was set for Santa Clara, near São Francisco in Califórnia, and it arrives with the Americans trying to turn a troubling pattern into a knockout-round result.
The question has followed the United States because the team has lost its last 10 games against European national teams, a sequence that stretches back to a 0-0 draw with England at the last World Cup. Since then, the Americans have fallen to the Netherlands, Sérvia, Eslovênia, Suíça, Bélgica and Portugal, and they also lost twice to Alemanha and twice to Turquia. Their last victory over a European opponent came in a friendly against Irlanda do Norte in 2021.
Pochettino said he did not see a curse at work. “Acho que não. Pode ser apenas uma coincidência,” he said, adding that Thursday’s meeting offered “a good opportunity to challenge history” not just against Bósnia e Herzegovina, but against the last five years. He also called it “mais um desafio,” a reminder that the knockout stage is where reputations harden fast and excuses do not last long.
The matchup is not being framed as a simple ranking exercise, even though the United States are 46th in the latest FIFA list and sit ahead of Bósnia. Pochettino said the Americans should not be treated as favorites, warning against labeling one side as the clear choice before the ball is kicked. That matters because Bósnia reached the World Cup knockout stage for the first time in its history by finishing third in Group B after beating Catar, while the United States come in after a changed lineup and a mixed stretch that included wins over Paraguai and Austrália and a loss to Turquia.
Christian Pulisic is back in full physical condition and available to start after coming off the bench against Turquia last week, giving Pochettino one more decision to weigh before kickoff. For the United States, the next step is simple and severe: beat Bósnia in Santa Clara, or keep carrying the same European burden into the next cycle.
