Bosnia is the Next Test

 After Sneaking Out of the Group in Third Place, Bosnia is a Tricky Opponent

Bosnia and Herzegovina arrive in Santa Clara as underdogs, and they wouldn't have it any other way.

The Dragons earned their place in the Round of 32 the hard way, navigating a turbulent group stage that included a 4-1 thrashing at the hands of Switzerland before bouncing back with a 3-1 win over Qatar that clinched their spot as one of the tournament's best third-place finishers. It's only their second World Cup appearance, and already they've gone further than they did in Brazil in 2014. For a side that also failed to qualify for the two tournaments that followed, Wednesday night represents something genuinely historic.

They didn't arrive here by accident, either. Bosnia famously eliminated Italy in qualifying to punch their ticket to this World Cup—a result that underscored the belief running through Sergej Barbarez's squad. That belief hasn't wavered despite the prospect of playing on American soil before a packed, partisan crowd. "We will be extremely relieved, and we will try to take on any team that comes our way," Barbarez said after the Qatar win.

Their blueprint is familiar: defensively structured, dangerous on the counter. The wing pairing of Esmir Bajraktarević and Kerim Alajbegović, products of PSV and Bayer Leverkusen, respectively, gives Bosnia genuine pace and width in transition, while 40-year-old Edin Džeko, still searching for his first goal of this tournament, remains a constant aerial threat.

Center-back Tarik Muharemović returns from suspension after missing the Qatar match, shoring up a backline that will need to be disciplined for 90 minutes if Bosnia is to pull off one of the tournament's early upsets.