Croatia head coach Niko Kovac advised China to invest as much in football as they do in other sports.
"I don't see any reason why the Chinese team wouldn't have success on international level if China would invest in football like they do in some other sports," Kovac said, reports Xinhua.
"That's not something that can happen fast. We are talking about a 10 to 15-year process. It took Germans 10 to 12 years to make some reforms and now we can see the results. They have to do the same in China. When this happens, I can tell you, we have to be beware when the Chinese get going."
The Croatia coach said that teams from Asia had a better chance to reach the level of their European and South American counterparts thanks to the bigger population.
"I think that Asian teams have a better chance than Africans to challenge Europeans and South Americans because they have bigger population and therefore with right investment they can produce not only quality players but clubs and national teams, as well," he said.