Stuttgart's Stiller and Führich replace injured Germany duo
Stuttgart's Chris Fuehrich (L) gestures next to his teammate Angelo Stiller during the German Bundesliga soccer match between VfB Stuttgart and RB Leipzig at MHPArena. VfB Stuttgart midfielders Angelo Stiller and Chris Führich received late call-ups to the Germany squad on Monday after Felix Nmecha and Aleksandar Pavlovic were forced to withdraw. Jan-Philipp Strobel/dpa VfB Stuttgart midfielders Angelo Stiller and Chris Führich received late call-ups to the Germany squad on Monday after Felix Nmecha and Aleksandar Pavlovic were forced to withdraw.
The German Football Federation (DFB) confirmed the moves in a statement as the squad gathered for March World Cup warm-ups against Switzerland and Ghana. Borussia Dortmund said that the 25-year-old Nmecha would be missing for several weeks because of a knee problem. Bayern Munich's Pavlovic has a hip injury, the DFB said.
Julian Nagelsmann's squad face Switzerland in Basel on Friday and three days later meet Ghana in Stuttgart. These are the last friendlies before the initial World Cup squad needs to be announced for June and July's tournament in North America. Stuttgart striker Deniz Undav already received a Germany recall and celebrated with two more goals and an assist in a 5-2 win at Augsburg in the Bundesliga on Sunday, which sent his side third.
He is the second top scorer in the German top flight with 18 goals. Bayern's England captain Harry Kane has 31. "When I play, I try to shine and score," the 29-year-old Undav said.
"These are very important matches. They are not just friendlies. We have to put ourselves forward and show the coach that we want to be at the World Cup.