“For big decisions, like last night with the handball," Klinsmann said of the goal that gave Peru a 1-0 win and knocked Brazil out of the Copa Centenario, "you want to be able to know, Was it a handball or wasn’t it a handball, was it a penalty, yes or no? Why not take those extra 10 or 15 seconds with the fourth official on the sideline? He can watch the replay really quick and make a decision -- yes, it was a penalty, no it wasn’t, yes it was a goal, no it wasn’t."
He said goal-line technology alone isn't enough.
"I think we’re 20 years behind sports like the NBA and NF," he said. "Let’s give the referees all the help they can get to make the right decision."
Klinsmann was speaking on Monday during a Facebook session with fans at Seattle's CenturyLink Field, where the USA will face on Thursday.
Since the disastrous first-half performance against Guatemala in Guatemala City, the USA has run off six wins in its last seven games, including two of three at the Copa Centenario to move into the quarterfinals. It marks the most consistent run for the USA since the summer of 2013 when it opened up a lead in the Hexagonal and won the Gold Cup.
Only four players who were regular starters in the June 2013 run of qualifiers -- Fabian Johnson, Jermaine Jones, Michael Bradley andClint Dempsey -- remain in the team, and the USA has almost completely rebuilt its defense. (Johnson started in midfield against Jamaica and Panama and moved to left back against Honduras because DaMarcus Beasley was suspended.)
Klinsmann says a big reason for the USA's success has been the consistency of the backline and the availability of Geoff Cameronand John Brooks.
"All of our backline players, especially out center backs, they all went through ups and downs over the last year, which is just totally normal," he said. "John Brooks went through a learning curve. Remember last year's Gold Cup: here and there a little bit of a mistake. Geoff Cameron was not part of it. Geoff was injured. Then John Brooks was injured in the World Cup qualifiers. Finally we had a stretch of time then when they were not only healthy but fit and they sent out signals. Right now, the partnership with Geoff Cameron and John Brooks looks very, very good, looks intimidating for the opponents."
PUNISHMENT FOR YEDLIN. Klinsmann said the USA's success was a credit to the team's strong chemistry. He said at each stop during the Copa Centenario, or on foreign trips for that matter, the team tries to connect locally.
In Philadelphia, where the USA beat Paraguay, 1-0, the players climbed the Rocky steps. In Seattle, they'll go to the Pike Place Fish Market.
"Maybe we'll throw a fish," Klinsmann joked, "and have DeAndre Yedlin catch it because he made that mistake with the two yellows [that heave him out of Thursday's game]."
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