http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/story-12898818-detail/story.html? GARETH Southgate has praised Stoke's "winning football", and insists there is no conflict between the way the Potters play the game and the grassroots revolution he is trying to oversee. The former England defender is now the Football Association's head of elite development, and has been helping to lead the Your Kids, Your Say roadshow which visited the Britannia Stadium this week. The event showcased radical proposals for the way children's football is run. They include a switch to summer football, the scrapping of league tables for competitions involving youngsters under secondary school age, the introduction of five-a-side and nine-a-side games, and a change in the date that determines which age groups children play in. The plans are seen as the long-term answer to improving technique, preventing kids dropping out of the game and ultimately raising the standard of English football. But Southgate accepts that is a world away from the ultra-competitive Premier League, and says the two should not be confused. He told The Sentinel: "I have known Tony Pulis a long time. His football is geared to getting results. It's all about "winning football". "He is in the professional game where you have to prioritise results, whereas what we are trying to do, and our style of football, is not about trying to get results. We are thinking about younger age-groups, not the senior level. "But who can argue with what Stoke have achieved over the last five years â promotion, Premier League stability, an FA Cup final and now Europe?" Southgate also believes much of the criticism aimed at Stoke's so-called "direct" style of play is unfair, adding: "I know players here at Stoke such as Robert Huth, who I had at Middlesbrough, who is very comfortable coming out with the ball. "And then there's Ryan Shawcross, who is very well thought of at the FA. Tony has put all these talents together and made the best of what they have. He has produced a winning style which suits this club down to the ground. "Their style has developed, and at times last season some of their football was thoroughly entertaining. "In Matthew Etherington and Jermaine Pennant they have arguably the most exciting pair of wingers in the country." Southgate was joined at the Britannia Stadium by Nick Levett, the FA's national development manager for youth and mini soccer who has consulted youth clubs, grassroots coaches, youth leagues and young footballers on the proposals. It was the turn of Staffordshire's grassroots coaches and administrators at the Brit, and the duo asked some searching questions about the proposals. Southgate insists change must happen in the long term if English football is to catch up with other leading European nations. He explained: "When I was growing up, the FA Cup final was the only match that was on TV; we now see European football every weekend. "People are seeing it and rightly asking why we aren't technically playing the same way as the Spanish, Portuguese or Italians. "I think there's a generation of fathers saying that this is what they want for their kids. "We had done a lot of work anyway, but I think last year's World Cup in South Africa highlighted the problem. "Deep down, people know there needs to be a longer-term plan in place. I honestly think there is a mood for change that's countrywide."
