Jurgen Klinsmann put referee Djamel Haimoudi on notice prior to the US vs. Belgium round of 16 game at the World Cup on Tuesday.
Haimoudi is from Algeria and was selected by FIFA two officiate two round of 16 games, including the US vs. Belgium. Klinsmann noted that Algeria lost to Belgium in the tournament. He also noted that Haimoudi could speak French and would be able to communicate with the Belgium players.
“Sometimes I don’t understand FIFA,” Klinsmann said. “It’s difficult always to choose the right referees for the right games and it’s always been kind of tricky for FIFA, but it is what it is. We give it absolutely the benefit of the doubt. We respect the decision. We’re going to be spot on in the game and hope that everything goes well.”
I’m not completely sure what Klinsmann thinks the official will do or why he feels Haimoudi would be motivated to call things biased towards Belgium, but there’s little doubt about what Jurgen was doing. Much like a Phil Jackson who tries to prime the refs ahead of games, Klinsmann was probably trying to get into Haimoudi’s head and make him realize that there will be a close eye on him. Hopefully that helps.
