Tim Howard Told Bosnia Not to Bother Flying to San Francisco. Their Coach Didn’t Flinch.

The U.S. men’s national team took a gut-punch loss to Turkiye in its third World Cup group match. But former goalkeeper Tim Howard isn’t worried. In fact, he’s issuing a warning to the next team on the schedule.

Bosnia-Herzegovina faces the U.S. on Wednesday in San Francisco. And Howard made it clear he doesn’t think the trip is worth their time.

“Bosnia … they’re better off not even getting on a plane and going to San Francisco because the U.S. is gonna put work in against them,” Howard said on Unfiltered Soccer.

The Americans entered the World Cup with back-to-back wins over Australia and Paraguay. Then Turkiye handed them a loss that stung but didn’t knock them out of the tournament. The team was already through to the knockout stage regardless. That context mattered to Howard.

“Playing in a hard game that didn’t go our way when the result didn’t matter is success to me,” Howard said. “So, the power of the World Cup is amazing … we’re fine. Everything is fine.”

He’s asking fans to take a breath. The loss might even sharpen the team’s edge heading into the Bosnia game.

Bosnia’s coach isn’t backing down

Sergej Barbarez, the head coach of Bosnia-Herzegovina, heard what Howard said. And he responded with exactly the kind of calm confidence you’d expect from someone who doesn’t have much to lose.

“All of this is a bonus for us,” Barbarez told ESPN. “We will be extremely relieved, and we will try to take on any team that comes our way. We are confident enough to face anyone.”

That’s the kind of talk that makes for a good pregame headline. But Howard spent years in goal for the U.S., including the 2014 World Cup, and he’s seen enough to know when a team is locked in.

Wednesday’s game won’t decide the Americans’ World Cup fate. But it’s a chance to reset the tone, shake off the Turkiye loss, and build momentum before the knockout round starts. Howard’s message is loud and clear: the U.S. will show up ready. Bosnia has been warned.

We’ll see if the Americans hear him and put together a performance that backs it up.