Switzerland uses late goal barrage to beat Bosnia

INGLEWOOD, California— Some teams at this yr’s World Cup have blamed FIFA’s recent hydration breaks for killing momentum.

Switzerland used the break to seize it.

Coach Murat Yakin said he timed a triple substitution of speedy players for the second-half pause Thursday, betting that plucky Bosnia-Herzegovina couldn’t handle an abrupt change of pace in what had been a nervy, scoreless match.

Johan Manzambi and Rubén Vargas made their coach look awfully clever while they led a spectacular barrage of goals that put the Swiss in command of the sport and atop their group.

Manzambi scored his first World Cup goal on an excellent volley within the 74th minute, and Switzerland erupted late for a 4-1 victory over Bosnia.

Despite controlling possession deep into the second half, Switzerland couldn’t break through against the Dragons until Yakin used the FIFA-mandated pause to turbo-charge its attack with the 20-year-old Manzambi and the dynamic Vargas. Each substitutes immediately altered the tempo, and each played roles in multiple goals while Bosnia went right down to 10 men.

“It was very essential that after the second hydration break, we’d change a number of things, because then the opponent can’t react immediately,” Yakin said through an interpreter. “Perhaps that was the sting we had. We brought in very fast players, and our opponent couldn’t run (with them), and it opened up gaps on the sting. That was my strategy. I waited until the break.”

Switzerland’s Johan Manzambi, center, celebrates with teammates after scoring the opening goal against Bosnia in the course of the World Cup Group B soccer match in Inglewood, Calif., near Los Angeles, Thursday, June 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Vargas scored within the 84th minute shortly after Tarik Muharemovic was sent off for a dangerous tackle. Manzambi scored again within the ninetieth on a pass from Vargas, and captain Granit Xhaka converted from the penalty spot with the ultimate kick of the sport in stoppage time.

Switzerland opened the World Cup with a disappointing 1-1 draw with Qatar last week, stoking concern concerning the team’s mental state. The Swiss then struggled to get loose from the Dragons, who were unbeaten of their last nine competitive matches.

Backed by tens of hundreds of raucous fans within the Los Angeles area, Bosnia capably hung with Switzerland into the second half — until the hydration break led to a moment of brilliance from Manzambi, a 20-year-old Geneva native who plays for German club Freiburg.

“This might be the most effective moment of my profession thus far,” Manzambi said. “We knew we didn’t start the match in the easiest way, but we needed to be patient. We all know we’re team, and we showed it.”

Three minutes after Manzambi replaced standout winger Dan Ndoye, he jumped and connected perfectly on Amar Memic’s attempted clearing header. The volley set off a wild celebration within the nervous Swiss sections of SoFi Stadium.

“He’s a boy who learned easy methods to play football on the streets, but on defense he also has loads of discipline,” Yakin said. “He still must learn easy methods to be more structured, but we’re making progress. We try to present him loads of freedom to play, and he handles it thoroughly.”

Substitute Ermin Mahmic scored in second-half injury time for Bosnia, which still has a legitimate likelihood of reaching the knockout stage of only its second World Cup. Mahmic’s vicious goal in traffic salvaged some good feeling before a decisive showdown with Qatar next week.

“Perhaps our start wasn’t that good, but from (first) cooling break until the goal, we were the higher team,” Bosnia coach Sergej Barbarez said. “We had two or three excellent possibilities which must have resulted in a goal. … That is the primary match we’ve lost shortly, and it’s hurtful. It’s quite painful, but we all know that if we win the following game, now we have a good chance of going forward within the tournament.”

4 minutes after Muharemovic was sent off for taking down striker Breel Embolo one step outside the penalty area, Embolo got the ball from Manzambi and slipped a pass across the front to Vargas for a no-doubt goal.

Xhaka then found Vargas in deep for an additional pass to Manzambi, who finished with aplomb.

Captain Edin Dzeko began and played 63 minutes for Bosnia, becoming the fourth outfield player to start out at a World Cup in his 40s — a gaggle joined by Luka Modric and Cristiano Ronaldo on Wednesday. Barbarez said Dzeko didn’t play within the World Cup opener last week because he wasn’t fully fit.