Substitutes Johan Manzambi and Ruben Vargas helped Switzerland stun 10-man Bosnia-Herzegovina 4-1 at the World Cup on Thursday to boost their hopes of reaching the knockout stage.

The pair came on in the 72nd minute with the score 0-0 and were an instant hit.

Two minutes later, Vargas' cross was cleared to Manzambi, who scored his first World Cup goal on an outstanding volley. Vargas netted the second himself in the 84th minute shortly after Tarik Muharemovic was sent off for a dangerous tackle, leaving Bosnia with 10 men.

Manzambi scored again in the 90th minute on a pass from Vargas, and captain Granit Xhaka converted from the penalty spot with the final kick of the game in stoppage time.

Ermin Mahmic scored in second-half injury time for Bosnia, who still have a legitimate chance of reaching the knockout stage of only its second World Cup.

Switzerland followed up their disappointing 1-1 draw with Qatar last week by largely dominating play against the momentum-laden Dragons, who were unbeaten in their last nine competitive matches.

But the Swiss couldn't break through until a moment of brilliance from Manzambi, a 20-year-old Geneva native who plays for German club Freiburg – and then Muharemovic's red card changed the match.

Manzambi scored three minutes after coming on for standout winger Dan Ndoye. Manzambi jumped and connected perfectly on Amar Memic's attempted clearing header, setting off a wild celebration in the nervous Swiss section of SoFi Stadium.

Bosnia were backed by a raucous cheering section with tens of thousands of fans in the crowd of 70,026 celebrating their nation’s second World Cup appearance. The Dragons had less possession and fewer chances, yet every good moment was greeted by roars.

Four minutes after Muharemovic was sent off for taking down striker Breel Embolo one step outside the penalty area, Embolo got the ball from Manzambi and slipped a pass across the front to Vargas for a no-doubt goal. Xhaka then found Vargas in deep for another pass to Manzambi, who finished with aplomb.

Mahmic's vicious goal in traffic salvaged some good feeling for Bosnia following their draw with co-host Canada last week.

Captain Edin Dzeko started and played 63 minutes for Bosnia, becoming the fourth outfield player to start at a World Cup in his 40s – a group joined by Luka Modric and Cristiano Ronaldo on Wednesday.

Switzerland opened play last week by giving up the tying goal to Qatar in the fourth minute of second-half injury time, prompting immediate concern about the group favorite.

Bosnia impressively held Canada to a draw in Toronto, continuing a strong run by coach Sergej Barbarez's team. The Dragons qualified in theatrical fashion by stunning Wales and Italy in qualifying playoffs.

Canada play Qatar later on Thursday. The final round is next week when Canada play Switzerland and Bosnia face Qatar.

The top two from the 12 groups advance to the knockout stages along with the eight best third-placed teams.