Malik Tillman says the USA win showed character after Bosnia & Herzegovina red card

Malik Tillman was the decisive figure as USA beat Bosnia & Herzegovina 2-0 in the round of 32. He scored a late direct free-kick with eight minutes remaining, then said the finish came from work done in training. It was also a messy night, with Folarin Balogun sent off in the 64th minute and Tillman nursing a cut foot after an earlier challenge.

Tillman's set-piece finish

"Of course I practise it in training. You never know when it's going to happen, but luckily today it happened. I was ready for it. I felt confident," Tillman told bundesliga.com. He was not talking about a hopeful swing at goal. The free-kick was deliberate, and it became the moment that settled the match.

The goal also carried some rare World Cup company. Tillman became only the second USA player on record to score a direct free-kick at a World Cup. Eric Wynalda was the first, doing it in 1994. Tillman's performance rating of 7.9 was the highest in the USA side, and he won 8 duels in 14 contests, which fits the picture of a midfielder who did more than stand over one dead ball.

The USA's response to a difficult night

Tillman was blunt about the mood after the final whistle. "[This win] shows our character. We're always there for each other, no matter what. Today showed that," he said. That reads like standard post-match language until you put it beside the game itself. Balogun's dismissal in the 64th minute forced the USA into a long spell with 10 men, and Tillman also finished the media duties with a bloody sock after the earlier challenge.

There was enough left in the match for Matthew Freese to make 3 saves and keep the clean sheet intact, while Tillman's through-ball for the opener took two deflections off Bosnia defenders before reaching Balogun. USA vs Bosnia & Herzegovina was not tidy, but it was controlled enough for the result to stand and for Tillman's set piece to be remembered as the turning point.

The next game will tell more about how the USA carry that response forward, but this one was already clear enough on its own. Tillman trained the free-kick, struck it cleanly and finished as the game's standout player, with the result secured despite the red card and the cut foot.