THE Philippines team has sprinkled some foreign flavor to its football, with numerous recruits from Europe and the Americas and coaches from England and Germany—but for it to be successful in the Asian level, much bigger changes are needed.

This was the assessment made by German guru Eckhard Krautzu after seven weeks of observation in five key cities in the country.

“The style of play that I saw, from the UFL [United Football League] to the players in the provinces, they all played long high balls. And it reminded me of the 1980s, we called that kick and rush,” said the 70-year-old German mentor who once handled the 1991 Philippine football team for the Southeast Asian Games in Manila.

“For the Philippine players, I want them to play on the ground, start passing and playing on the ground and it’s a must because you have small players,” he added. “No long ball, passing is the priority, control should be next.

Krautzun toured Cebu, Davao, Iloilo, Bacolod and Metro Manila and delivered part of his assessment on Thursday in a press conference at the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) office also attended by federation President Mariano Araneta and Azkals head coach Michael Weiss.

His observation will be used by the PFF for the implementation of its eight-year grassroots program with the ultimate goal is to qualify in the Under-17 World Cup.

Krautzun, the technical adviser for PFF, mentioned Spaniard Iniesta and Lionel Messi of Argentia as prime examples who, despite of their lack of height, are now very successful in the sport.

The change of style of play will take some time, according to the German coach who once handled the Chinese Olympic team in 2008.

“We will start implementing this program next year. We will develop the grassroots level, center the program on developing the youth and our target is to be Asian qualifier for the 2019 Under-17 World Cup,” said Araneta, who is seeking a fresh mandate in the PFF election on Saturday.

“We know it’s a lofty ambition but we have to start somewhere. I believe with the program already there, we will have a very chance of reaching that goal,” he added.

Aside from the style of play, Krautzun also batted for more equipment and football fields for the young players get the chance to hone their skills.

“No doubt, compare to 20 years ago when I was here, football here is on the right track. More interest from the public, parents and media,” said Krautzun.

“But the biggest problem is the number of fields and basic equipment. In some areas, namely, in Davao, there are 1.3 million people there and only one football field. It’s really a disaster,” he added.

With the great interest that the sport is now generating, Krautzun is hoping that the private sector will support the PFF’s grassroots program.

“We don’t all have the funds to fund the grassroots programs. We just identified the specific areas given the resources we have,” said Araneta.

Krautzun, who arrived here last October 17, donated 60 balls in the areas he visited.