After Italy, Bosnia target another famous win over Swiss

Bosnia-Herzegovina famously qualified for this World Cup by knocking out Italy, and will aim to prove it was no fluke against another European power in Thursday’s clash with Switzerland in Los Angeles.

Veteran forward Edin Dzeko, 40, did not feature in Bosnia’s 1-1 opening draw with co-hosts Canada in Toronto, but will be available to coach Sergej Barbarez’s side as they try to spring another upset on the Group B top seeds.

Barbarez said his side has “shown in very recent times we can come on top against ‘stronger opponents’ in paper.”

He waved away suggestions that Swiss players will expect to defeat a team ranked 44 places lower than them in FIFA’s global rankings.

“Everyone has the right to their own opinion and show their confidence,” the coach told a press conference.

“When we were playing against Italy in the playoffs, we had a similar sort of sentiment publicly, but we stayed focused on ourselves,” Barbarez added.

Bosnia reached the finals by beating Italy in a penalty shootout at the end of a tense playoff in March.

Defender Nikola Katic said Bosnia had not received the attention their achievement deserved, as nearly all the focus had been on four-time winners Italy failing to qualify for a third consecutive World Cup

“We managed to beat one of the biggest nations in the history of football. And I think after that we didn’t get the credit we deserve, because it was more spoken about ‘bad Italy’ than ‘good Bosnia,’” he said.

“So I think for us personally, it was a great achievement, was a great step, and it was a win that is going to boost our confidence for the future.

Bosnia’s coach has set a target of getting through the group phase. The team are playing in their second World Cup finals. They were eliminated in the group stages in Brazil in 2014.

All four teams in Group B have one point after the first round, following Switzerland’s disappointing opening draw with Qatar, who had never previously earned a point in a World Cup.

Swiss midfielder Remo Freuler said his side “have to look at ourselves and we have to be critical” following two dropped points from a stoppage-time Qatar equalizer.

“We were disappointed, but the next day we had to assess the match and learn from it… when you’re in the lead, you also have to work on the defense, and you have to really perform and deliver.”