Switzerland 4-1 Bosnia: Manzambi 74, 90, Vargas 84, Xhaka 90+6 pen; Mahmic 90+2
For more than 70 minutes Switzerland dominated possession but couldn’t find a breakthrough. Another wasteful display after their opening draw against Qatar and their campaign would be hanging by a threat, particularly with hosts Canada to come next.
But the introduction of Johan Manzambi in the second half changed the contest as the 20-year-old scored twice on either side of teammate Ruben Vargas’s effort, before Xhaka Granit Xhaka wrapped things up with a late penalty.
Bosnia had Tarik Muharemovic sent off for a poor challenge on Breel Embolo in the 80th minute, but by then Manzambi had already kickstarted the inexorable Swiss march to victory. The Freiburg midfielder needed only minutes to make his mark after entering as part of a triple substitution. In the 74th minute, Amar Memic’s headed clearance dropped invitingly on the edge of the area and Manzambi was lightning-quick in his response, meeting the ball with a crisp right-footed volley that flashed beyond Nikola Vasilj and into the corner.
Switzerland had started brightly and put pressure on Bosnia with Dan Ndoye, Remo Freuler and Manuel Akanji all creating chances with little fruit. It was a resolute defensive game for Bosnia, who only occasionally threatened through veteran captain Edin Dzeko. The 40-year-old striker was meant to be his side’s chief outlet but could only feed on scraps after Switzerland restricted access through the middle.
After Manzambi scored and Muharemovic saw red, Vargas doubled the advantage six minutes from time, steering a low finish beyond Vasilj. Manzambi then completed his memorable cameo in the 90th minute, calmly finishing from Vargas’s pass to extinguish any lingering Bosnian hopes.
There was still time for Ermin Mahmic to produce a spectacular consolation, hammering a volley into the net after Switzerland failed to fully clear a corner. But the final word belonged to Xhaka.
