Canada coach Jesse Marsch may be a native of Wisconsin and a former assistant with the United States men’s national team, but don’t look for him to be giving the Americans any pointers about their upcoming opponent.
Speaking with reporters Sunday following his team’s 1-0 win over South Africa in the round of 32 in Los Angeles, Marsch was asked if there was anything in particular the U.S. had to beware of against Bosnia and Herzegovina in their round of 32 match in Santa Clara, Calif., on Wednesday.
“I appreciate your question, but I don’t really care,” he said.
Canada played Bosnia and Herzegovina in their opening match of the group stage on June 12 and needed a goal in the 78th minute to earn a 1-1 draw in a game the Canadians were expected to win in Toronto.
“It’s up to the U.S. to figure out, and they can learn from the matches that Bosnia played,” he continued. “I know a couple of players on their team, and Bosnia is a group of fighters, so they were not easy to play against. I was very complimentary of them after the game. I thought we could have been better in the match, but I think that whoever they play, they will give a really hard match.”
Much like the game against Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada got a late goal on Sunday. Only this time, the 92nd-minute strike by Stephen Eustaquio broke a scoreless tie and proved to be the difference against the South Africans. Canada will next play July 4 against the winner of Monday’s match between Netherlands and Morocco.
Marsch played 13 seasons in MLS, first with D.C. United (1996-97), followed by the Chicago Fire (1998-2005) and Chivas USA (2006-09). He has managed in MLS, the Austrian Bundesliga and the Premier League.
Earlier this World Cup, he made waves when he said he and former USMNT coach Bob Bradley “had to beg” his players to sing the national anthem before World Cup games. Marsch was an assistant on Bradley’s staff from 2010-11. He was named head coach of Team Canada in May 2024.
–Field Level Media
