Germany made it eight wins on the spin as goals from Kai Havertz and Timo Werner sealed a 2-0 friendly win over Israel at the PreZero Arena on Saturday. 

Die Mannschaft rounded off their World Cup qualifying campaign with a 4-1 victory over Armenia in November, and they picked up where they left off against Gadi Brumer's side in Sinsheim. 

Havertz gave them a 36th-minute lead with a smart near-post header, before Timo Werner's 22nd international goal on the stroke of half-time ensured they had a healthy advantage at the interval. 

Hansi Flick's side were content to play out the second period at a more pedestrian pace, although there was late drama as Thomas Muller and Yonatan Cohen exchanged penalty misses. 

Despite Germany's dominant start, they did not carve out a shot on target until the 29th minute when Ofir Marciano got down well to repel Havertz's effort, with Julian Draxler prodding the rebound into the side netting.

Ilkay Gundogan curled straight at Marciano from a promising position soon after, before the Israel goalkeeper raced off his line to deny a clean-through Havertz.

The Chelsea forward was not to be denied from David Raum's resulting corner, however, heading home his eighth international goal from inside the six-yard box.

The hosts doubled their advantage in first-half stoppage time through an unmarked Werner steering in Gundogan's indirect free-kick at the near post.

Only a superb Marciano save denied Thilo Kehrer a third on the hour mark as Germany continued to dominate after the break.

Muller fluffed his lines from 12 yards in the 89th minute after Lukas Nmecha had been brought down inside the area, while Cohen saw his spot-kick saved by Kevin Trapp after he had been tripped by Nico Schlotterbeck.

What does it mean? Flick's men shaping up nicely for Qatar

Germany were utterly dominant throughout, yet Flick will not get carried away given Israel are a whopping 66 places beneath them in FIFA's world rankings.

Still, this was further proof that Die Mannschaft are in rude health and will be a force to be reckoned with at the World Cup in Qatar later this year.

Havertz shines for hosts

He was less threatening after the interval, yet Havertz was comfortably Germany's brightest spark. The 22-year-old had a game-high five shots, while no player on the pitch made more key passes (four).

Dabbur an isolated figure

Hoffenheim striker Munas Dabbur scarcely had a look in at the stadium where he plays his club football, with the isolated frontman substituted in the 74th minute having had just a single shot.

What's next?

Both sides are in friendly action again on Tuesday, with Germany travelling to Netherlands and Israel hosting Romania.

Kai Havertz says that he and his Chelsea team-mates would pay to travel to away games this season, adding that they must "give the fans a smile" amid the club's chaotic existence.

The Blues are currently under a fleet of financial sanctions in relation to owner Roman Abramovich, laid down by the United Kingdom government amid the Ukraine-Russia crisis.

Those sanctions include a cap on the cost of travel for away games for the foreseeable future, raising serious questions over whether Chelsea can fulfil their fixture schedule.

But ahead of a trip to France to face Lille in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 clash on Wednesday, Havertz vowed that players would turn out their own pockets if needed to fund their journeys.

"I would pay, it's no problem," the German stated. "That's not a big deal for us. For us to come to the games, that's the most important thing.

"I think there are a lot of harder things in the world at the moment than if we have to take the train or the bus to an away game. I would pay. It's no problem.

"I think we are all professional footballers. Everyone knows it's a strange situation for everyone in the club right now.

"But we are the players, we have to focus on playing football, on the matches, that's the best we can do."

Havertz admitted that he was limited to what he could say amid the fluid situation of Chelsea's day-to-day existence and future, but added that the team could at the very least do their supporters proud.

"All the other stuff, the club has to sort out by themselves, that's not up to the players," he added. "I cannot talk about it too much because we are focused on the games and that's all we can do at the moment.

"It's not easy. I think such a situation has not happened at Chelsea before, so it's a little bit strange, but we are professionals and sometimes situations like this can happen.

"It's not easy for us all, especially for the whole club, the fans, everyone. The best we can do is play good football, try to give the fans a smile.

"In these sort of situations, everything is tough for us. As we saw at the weekend, we can handle these situations and hopefully tomorrow as well."

A supremely busy Premier League Sunday may not have included either of the top two, but there was certainly no shortage of talking points.

There was particular focus towards the bottom of the table, with Norwich City and Everton losing yet again, while in the top-four race, Arsenal took another step towards sealing the final Champions League spot.

Chaos continues to engulf Chelsea, but they carry on winning, claiming a dramatic 1-0 win over Newcastle United, who were reminded again what it is like to lose following an impressive unbeaten run.

Without any further ado, Stats Perform looks at the key Opta facts from some of the day's games…

Chelsea 1-0 Newcastle United: Havertz decisive again

It was a particularly strange day at Stamford Bridge, with much of the pre-match noise focused on the two clubs' owners and fans.

But once the game started it was quickly remembered that this was going to give the clearest indication of the true extent of Newcastle's recent improvement.

As it happened, Chelsea clinched a late winner through Kai Havertz, who appeared to channel Dennis Bergkamp as he brought down Jorginho's pass and prodded home almost in one action.

That was the German's sixth goal involvement in five league games and saw him net in three successive top-flight matches for the club, with the former Bayer Leverkusen talent well and truly establishing himself as one of the competition's standout attackers.

It brought Newcastle's nine-match unbeaten run in the league to an end, with it also the first time since December that the Magpies have failed to score in the competition, though it was another encouraging performance from Eddie Howe's team.

Arsenal 2-0 Leicester City: Gunners finding their groove

Everything's looking rather rosy right now at Arsenal, with the Gunners making a pretty convincing case for the top four – this victory puts them a point clear of Manchester United, with Mikel Arteta's men crucially having three games in hand.

Leicester never looked like interrupting Arsenal's flow here, with the hosts in fine shape and playing eye-catching football.

This was their fifth successive league win, with Arsenal the only team outside of the top three to achieve that feat this season.

Their home form has proven a major help. They have lost just once at the Emirates Stadium since losing to Chelsea in their season opener, winning 10 of those 13 games.

Martin Odegaard in particular seems to have found another level lately, and he was excellent again, creating six chances. Five of those came in the first 45, making it the most by an Arsenal player in the first half of a game since October 2017 (Mesut Ozil, six).

Leeds United 2-1 Norwich City: Marsch madness twist leaves Canaries looking doomed

Leeds fans were devoted to Marcelo Bielsa. His replacement, Jesse Marsch, has been received well, but the jury is out on him.

A first win will surely aid his hopes of inspiring a bit of Marsch madness in the fanbase, and it came in dramatic circumstances too.

Joe Gelhardt scored a 90th-minute winner, making him the youngest player (19 years 313 days) to score a last-minute decider in the Premier League since February 2017 (Gabriel Jesus, 19y 308d) – the drama appeared to floor Marsch, who went tumbling to the ground amid the jubilant celebrations.

The joy on the Leeds bench was juxtaposed by the despair among the Norwich players and staff.

That was the Canaries' 20th Premier League defeat of the season in 29 games – never before in a league campaign have they reached 20 losses in fewer games.

Everton 0-1 Wolves: Lage's men continue exceptional 2022 form

What a season this is turning out to be for Wolves. When Nuno Espirito Santo left, there were certainly those who feared for the club's Premier League status given the stability that had served them well for several years was about to be truly tested.

Yet, they needn't have worried. Here we are in March and Wolves are challenging for European football and are one of the two form teams in the league in 2022.

This was their seventh Premier League win of the calendar year, secured by Conor Coady's goal, and leaves them with 21 points since January 1 – only Liverpool (eight wins, 25 points) have a better record than Wolves in 2022.

The reality is rather grimmer for Everton, however. Defeat here leaves them on 22 points from 26 matches, the lowest tally they have ever recorded at this stage of any league campaign (assuming a win equals three points).

This latest disappointment will likely bring fresh questions of manager Frank Lampard given only Norwich (one) have accumulated fewer points than Everton (three) since the former Chelsea boss' first game in charge.

Kai Havertz denied deliberately elbowing Newcastle United defender Dan Burn during Chelsea's 1-0 win on Sunday, insisting "this guy is eight feet tall" and he was simply jumping for the ball.

The Germany star struck a superb 89th-minute winner at Stamford Bridge as the Blues finished a difficult week with a victory that moved them to within 10 points of Premier League leaders Manchester City.

With the game drifting towards a goalless draw, Havertz controlled a fine Jorginho pass before rifling beyond Martin Dubravka, giving the home fans some cheer in the wake of Roman Abramovich being disqualified as owner following the United Kingdom government's sanctions against him.

Abramovich had assets frozen and a travel ban imposed due to his ties with Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, who ordered an invasion of Ukraine last month.

Earlier in the game, Havertz escaped a red card following a VAR check after he caught Burn with a raised arm while challenging for a header, a decision that caused consternation among the Newcastle players.

However, the former Bayer Leverkusen man said he was simply trying to win the ball against the imposing centre-back, telling Sky Sports: "Sometimes, it looks like this. On the pitch, it's different.

"People know I'm not a player who does things like this. This guy is seven, eight feet tall, and I have to jump. As anyone would know, you have to use your arms to jump. When I jump, and he is two heads higher than me, sometimes there's stuff.

"I can say sorry to him because he has an injury on the head and I feel bad. But you can't tell me I did this on purpose."

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe said "it could have been a red" but was far more frustrated with the decision not to award his side a penalty just before the hour mark.

Trevoh Chalobah had hold of Jacob Murphy's shirt and then seemed to trip the Newcastle midfielder after he entered the box, but neither referee David Coote nor VAR decided a foul had been committed.

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe: "I can't look past the penalty," Howe said. "I'm hugely disappointed with that decision and how they've reached that decision.

"Jacob's had his shirt ripped off his back. Clear penalty. If the referee doesn't give it on the pitch I can understand that but the VAR has to at least make the referee go and review his own decision because if he does he'll realise he got it wrong."

Kai Havertz was the hero as Chelsea snatched a 1-0 win over Newcastle United on Sunday at the end of a difficult week at Stamford Bridge.

The European champions did not manage a shot on target for 75 minutes in a largely listless performance coming just days after Roman Abramovich was disqualified as owner after being sanctioned by the UK government following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The lack of clarity over the club's future seemed to permeate the performance, with even Chelsea's home shirts creating confusion given they carried the Three logo despite the company suspending sponsorship and asking the banding to be removed.

Havertz eventually tested Martin Dubravka with a header late in the second half but it looked as though Newcastle – whose own Saudi Arabia-backed ownership came under further scrutiny in the build-up to the match – would extend their unbeaten run to nine games in all competitions.

However, Havertz's sublime control and finish from Jorginho's pass in the 89th minute gave Thomas Tuchel's men all three points, the Germany star having earlier been fortunate to escape a red card.

Newcastle largely kept Chelsea comfortably at bay in the first half, though, and Havertz – starting again in place of Romelu Lukaku – was arguably lucky not to see his game end early, a VAR check deciding no more than a yellow card was required after he caught Dan Burn with a raised arm.

Miguel Almiron almost scored a stunning opener seconds before the break, his volley from the edge of the box beaten away by Edouard Mendy.

VAR again left Newcastle fans frustrated when referee David Coote chose not to give a penalty for Trevoh Chalobah's challenge on Jacob Murphy and the decision was allowed to stand.

Havertz at last evaded centre-back Dan Burn to meet Hakim Ziyech's cross, but he could only nod the ball into Dubravka's grateful grasp.

Yet when Havertz at last evaded the attentions of Burn, he took down Jorginho's raking pass superbly before prodding high past Dubravka.

Kai Havertz netted twice as Chelsea cruised past Burnley at Turf Moor, with Reece James and Christian Pulisic also scoring in a comfortable 4-0 win for Thomas Tuchel's men.

It was Chelsea's first Premier League game since owner Roman Abramovich confirmed he had put the club up for sale, though there were no signs of distraction among the players.

They did struggle to create chances before half-time but then netted three goals in eight minutes to take the game away from Burnley soon after the break, before Pulisic added some gloss a little later.

Chelsea's first opening saw Charlie Taylor block from James, before Thiago Silva made a vital goal-line clearance from Wout Weghorst's shot at the other end.

Nathan Collins headed over as Sean Dyche's men enjoyed the better of the first period, before Dwight McNeil somehow missed with the goal gaping after Edouard Mendy's mistake.

The visitors needed less than two minutes to break the deadlock once the action resumed, with James twisting and turning before firing a superb opener into the bottom-left corner.

That strike looked to have given Tuchel's men greater purpose, and Havertz doubled the advantage just five minutes later, nodding home Pulisic's cross at the back post.

The Germany forward was then on hand to put the result beyond all doubt a few moments later, tapping home James' delivery. 

Things went from bad to worse for Burnley in the 69th minute, as James Tarkowski's error allowed Pulisic to score a fourth, wrapping up a comfortable Blues victory.

Kai Havertz and Christian Pulisic put Chelsea in control of their Champions League last-16 tie against Lille with a 2-0 win, but Mateo Kovacic and Hakim Ziyech went off injured. 

Despite Romelu Lukaku being dropped to the bench after a dismal showing against Crystal Palace on Saturday, Chelsea needed just eight minutes to find the net through Havertz. 

The reigning champions saw in-form duo Kovacic and Ziyech hobble off before the hour mark, casting doubt over their chances of featuring in the EFL Cup final against Liverpool on Sunday. 

Pulisic finished off a quick break after 63 minutes to secure a strong first-leg lead for Thomas Tuchel's side, with the return leg to come in France next month.

Havertz wasted little time in making his mark as the central striker, nodding home from Ziyech's corner after failing to take a couple of early chances. 

Antonio Rudiger almost turned a Renato Sanches cross into his own net and Lille threatened with a flurry of chances from the resulting corner as they started to get a foothold in the game. 

Chelsea were dealt a blow when they lost Kovacic and Ziyech in quick succession early in the second half, but they doubled their advantage in the 63rd minute. 

N'Golo Kante surged forward from inside the Chelsea half and fed Pulisic for a delightful dink over the onrushing Leo Jardim and into the bottom-right corner. 

Lille tried to reduce the arrears with a push for a late goal, but Edouard Mendy was never really tested and Chelsea remained in charge of the tie. 

What does it mean? Advantage Chelsea 

The Blues were always going to be the favourites in this match-up and they got the win that was expected of them despite being far from dominant. 

Chelsea have a good record when winning the first leg of a Champions League tie; in the 11 occasions they have won the opening encounter, they have reached the next round nine times. 

However, the two exits followed first-leg victories at Stamford Bridge against Barcelona in 1999-2000 and Liverpool in 2006-07. 

No room for Romelu 

Lukaku was dropped after having just seven touches across 90 minutes at the weekend. Havertz needed just five to have three attempts on goal and find the net with the last of them, showing he is more than capable of being a potent threat through the middle. 

Sanches shines in defeat 

Sanches proved he has come a long way as he returned to the ground where he infamously passed to a logo on an advertising board, which he had mistaken for a team-mate during an underwhelming loan spell at Swansea City in 2017. He bossed the midfield in the first half and played some lovely passes.  

What's next? 

Chelsea face Liverpool in the EFL Cup final at Wembley on Sunday, when Lille travel to Lyon in Ligue 1. 

Kai Havertz has his sights set on World Cup glory with Germany after securing the Club World Cup for Chelsea on Sunday. 

A penalty in extra-time from Havertz, who scored the winning goal in last season's Champions League final, saw Chelsea get their hands on the Club World Cup for the first time in their history thanks to a 2-1 win over Palmeiras in Abu Dhabi. 

The 22-year-old insisted he is focused on fighting for silverware on another four fronts with the Blues this season.

However, he has an eye on success with Germany at Qatar 2022 in December as well.

"Without a doubt, I want to be a World Cup winner this year," Havertz told Bild. 

"In the upcoming games with the national team, it's important to show yourself. 

"Nevertheless, I'm focused on the here and now with Chelsea. We can still the win the Premier League, Champions League, the EFL Cup final against Liverpool, and the FA Cup. We have big goals." 

Real Madrid and Barcelona had been credited with an interest in Havertz before he joined Chelsea in September 2020 for a reported £71million. 

Havertz is a fan of Spanish football but has no doubt picking the Premier League has enabled him to develop significantly despite stiff competition for game time at Stamford Bridge. 

"For me personally, the step to the Premier League was the right one. A lot of pundits saw me in LaLiga back then," said Havertz. 

"I like Spanish football a lot, but I'm also convinced that the Premier League has shaped me a lot in recent months and helped me progress. 

"When you play for a club like Chelsea, the competition is fierce. I was aware of that from the start. 

"Nothing is given to anyone. However, I'm convinced that if I play, I will repay the trust." 

Thomas Tuchel felt Chelsea were deserving Club World Cup winners and has challenged his "relentless" side to keep adding to their growing collection of titles in the remainder of the season.

Kai Havertz converted an extra-time penalty to secure a 2-1 win against Copa Libertadores holders Palmeiras, as Chelsea added success in FIFA's showpiece club tournament to the Champions League and Super Cup titles they lifted last year.

Tuchel, who missed his team's semi-final win over Al Hilal after testing positive for COVID-19 but was able to travel to the United Arab Emirates for the final, was full of praise for his charges after the contest.

While admitting Chelsea needed a little luck to avoid a shoot-out, the beaming former Paris Saint-German boss considered this a deserved victory.

"You need luck to score late on, but we were relentless, and we did not stop trying", Tuchel told Channel 4, having seen Romelu Lukaku's opener cancelled out by Raphael Veiga's spot-kick.

"We did not give in. We had the lead, then lost it, but never stopped. It was deserved, but it's also lucky when you score so late.

"The penalty [from Havertz] did not look nervous but for sure he was. 

"You cannot not be nervous in this situation. We trusted the statistics, and I'm happy for him."

Thomas Tuchel is unsure whether Romelu Lukaku will return for Chelsea's Champions League showdown with Juventus, while Kai Havertz could miss out entirely.

Record signing Lukaku has been out for a month due to an ankle injury, but is closing in on a comeback.

The Belgium striker was able to resume training last week, but Blues manager Tuchel will not rush him back into the side at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday.

While Lukaku's involvement appears undecided, Havertz seems unlikely to feature after suffering a hamstring injury against Leicester City.

Jorginho will be available after coming off with cramp in the win over the Foxes as the second-placed holders look for a win that would put them level on 12 points with the Group H leaders.

Asked about the possibility of Lukaku returning, Tuchel said: "Not sure yet. He seemed okay in training yesterday [Sunday], we will see about the reaction.

"He has an appointment with the doctors and physios. Maybe we can bring 20 players to the squad. The last minutes would be the absolute maximum.

"Jorginho is absolutely okay. Kai had a hamstring problem so we took him off and we have some doubts with him."

Chelsea are unbeaten in nine matches – winning seven and edging a penalty shootout – since losing 1-0 to the Bianconeri in September.

It has been reported that owner Roman Abramovich could be in attendance for the battle between the top two, but Tuchel says that will not give his side extra motivation to put on a show.

The German said: "Our show is the basics. We give our very best if the owner is here or if he is not here. He will watch us closely anyway if he isn't here.

"We put a show on a daily basis and that is with hard work to make him happy and all our supporters who are in the stadium tomorrow. We need everyone full on and ourselves to be at the top level."

The London club have only won one of their past 10 Champions League encounters with Italian sides.

Tuchel says Chelsea will not shoot themselves in the foot by taking a gung-ho approach to trying to qualify as group winners.

"We will not risk our qualification and go all in if the situation is like this, but we will try everything to win the game and the group and to do this, we have to win the game," said the former Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund boss.

Ilkay Gundogan struck twice as Germany rounded off a dominant World Cup qualifying campaign with a 4-1 win in Armenia on Sunday. 

Kai Havertz and Jonas Hofmann were also on target for Die Mannschaft at the Vazgen Sargsyan Republican Stadium, with the hosts replying through a consolation penalty from Henrikh Mkhitaryan.

Head coach Hansi Flick made six changes from the team that thrashed Liechtenstein 9-0 on Thursday, but Germany looked strong again, easing past the side bossed by Joaquin Caparros.

The win was a ninth from 10 qualifying matches for Germany and means they finish nine points clear of second-placed North Macedonia in Group J.

Germany took the lead after 15 minutes when Hofmann played a quick one-two with Thomas Muller before crossing from the right for Havertz to steer home.

The visitors had a penalty in first-half stoppage time when a VAR review led to the verdict that Florian Neuhaus had been fouled by Taron Voskanyan in the box, and Gundogan converted with ease.

The Manchester City midfielder had his second goal five minutes into the second half when his shot from the edge of the penalty area inexplicably slipped through the grasp of Stanislav Buchnev.

Armenia captain Mkhitaryan pulled a goal back from the spot after Neuhaus fouled David Terteryan in the box just before the hour, but a mistake from Mkhitaryan allowed Hofmann to intercept and race through to restore Germany's three-goal cushion in the 64th minute.

"If you have the ambition and quality, we count on you and give you the chance to develop. With development, there is also performance. That's why it's a great story for Florian but also for us as a club," Simon Rolfes told Stats Perform.

Bayer Leverkusen had money to splash after Chelsea paid a club-record fee to prise German star Kai Havertz from BayArena at the start of 2020-21. His absence was supposed to leave a glaring hole in North Rhine-Westphalia and prompt a frantic search in the transfer market.

But sporting director Rolfes and Leverkusen had other ideas. Rather than use the money recouped in the blockbuster Havertz transfer, Die Werkself opted to look in their own backyard for a replacement – 18-year-old teenage sensation Florian Wirtz.

Leverkusen's faith in youth and their clearly defined philosophy has served them well previously, and they're being rewarded once again by the club's latest wonderkid, who has put Havertz well and truly in the rear-view mirror as Europe's elite queue for his signature.

At home in the number 10 role behind a striker or even as a deep-lying playmaker, Wirtz can do it all on the pitch – as next opponents Bayern Munich may find out on Sunday.

Leverkusen prised Wirtz from Cologne in 2020. Dubbed "the best midfielder to come through the club in 30 years" by local newspaper Kolner Express, Bayern, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig and Liverpool were all circling after Wirtz captained boyhood team Cologne to Under-17 German Championship glory in 2019, but Leverkusen eventually won the race.

Rolfes had first watched Wirtz at the age of 13. He was immediately mesmerised by the Brauweiler-born sensation, who has firmly established himself in the Leverkusen XI, quickly becoming the new face of Die Werkself.

From his junior days, Wirtz has been great at exploiting gaps and creating space in midfield while churning out goalscoring chances with his devastating awareness. Not to mention his defence-splitting passing ability. Five years on and nothing has changed on the international stage.

"Extraordinary player," Rolfes told Stats Perform prior to the international break, after which Leverkusen now prepare to face champions Bayern in a top-of-the-table Bundesliga clash. "I saw him the first time when he was 13 and followed him all the time. Spoke with him before he moved to us, with the parents a lot of times and tried to convince them that it was the right step to come to us and accelerate his development. I and the whole club are very happy that he is with us. That's the interesting thing, I watched him the first time at 13 and he is still playing the same. 14,15, 16, always in that kind of style."

When a player breaks a record held by Havertz at Leverkusen, it is a sign to sit up and take notice.

Wirtz was swiftly thrust into the first team, becoming Leverkusen's youngest-ever debutant at the age of 17 years and 16 days, eclipsing Havertz's record, in last season's 4-1 rout of Werder Bremen in 2019-20. After a handful of appearances in the coronavirus-hit campaign, Wirtz played 29 Bundesliga games, which yielded five goals and as many assists in the post-Havertz era in 2020-21. In February 2021, Wirtz became the first player in the league's history to score five goals before celebrating his 18th birthday.

So, when it comes to comparing Wirtz to Havertz through their first 42 Bundesliga appearances with Leverkusen, how do they stack up against each other?

Wirtz has an equal split between goals and assists (10 each), averaging his 20 goal involvements once every 148 minutes across his top-flight career so far. That's quicker than Havertz managed at the same stage of his Bundesliga career, with his 16 goal involvements in his first 42 apps coming at an average of 165 minutes.

Wirtz also proved a shade more productive in front of goal, with an expected goals per 90 average of 0.16 compared to Havertz's 0.14, but the now-Chelsea forward was able to get more involved in the average game with 65 touches per 90 compared to Wirtz's 58 per 90.

"I wouldn't say they're similar. They're for sure similar in terms of extraordinary qualities and potential for really big careers," Rolfes said. "I would say at the end, Kai plays a little bit more forward and is very good in going deep with a lot of speed. Sometimes it doesn’t look like it because he is so tall but he is incredibly fast. Very direct, fantastic shot with his left foot and a good header. With his height, a very good header of the ball.

"With Florian, I think from a positional sense he is a little bit deeper. More technique in small spaces I would say. Kai likes to use his speed. They are quite different. They unfortunately only played/trained half a year together. It would be nice to have them both together in the squad at the moment because one right foot, one left. They would fit very good together."

With so much attention from a very young age, it is easy for some players to get swept up amid the hype and interest. Not Wirtz.

Wirtz has continued to shatter records and dazzle in the Bundesliga. Against Mainz on matchday six of this season, the Germany international became the youngest player to score 10 goals in Germany’s top-flight, doing so 208 days younger than Lukas Podolski (18 years, 353 days for Cologne in 2004).

No player in the Bundesliga this season has more assists than Wirtz (five) through seven rounds.

With four league goals in just six appearances, he is already only one goal shy of matching last season's haul, despite an expected goals (xG) goal value of 1.0 – no other player has such a large difference between his goals and expected goals.

His nine goal involvements in this season's Bundesliga are only surpassed by Dortmund star Erling Haaland (10), while Wirtz has the best shot conversion rate (36.4 per cent) among all players with at least three goals in 2021-22.

As Wirtz goes from prospect to genuine star, it all comes down to his mindset.

"The attitude is very good. With players and we could see it with Kai Havertz, they know their quality. They are 18 and self-confident because they know about their quality. Special players have that – they can feel that, feel it directly on the pitch. Playing with other good players, they're able to handle it and adapt to the different speed of the game," said Rolfes.

"In that case, they are quite far [developed] and they know there's interest in them because also with 14, 15, 16 it's normal big clubs watched him play. With Florian and Kai, it's quite the same. They always know they’re interesting and extraordinary players."

In all competitions in 2021-22, Wirtz (11) is the only player in Europe's big-five leagues 18 or younger to be involved in seven or more goals, having already found the back of the net twice in the Europa League.

Wirtz has been involved in a goal across all competitions every 47 minutes so far this term – at least up until the international break, it was the best rate of all players in Europe's top five leagues with at least 500 minutes, ahead of Haaland (51 mins), Real Madrid's Karim Benzema (52 mins), Bayern talisman Robert Lewandowski (60 mins) and Liverpool star Mohamed Salah (65 mins).

"In the youth teams, the difference in the quality between him and others was much higher. The game in the youth is around them. Now, he also has a big influence on the game, but he has to position himself better to get the ball and use his quality. Players with extraordinary quality have the ability to find the right spaces but in professional teams they have to wait a little bit in their position and then use their quality," former Leverkusen midfielder Rolfes said. "Compared to the youth where they are doing everything."

It's a frightening thought when you remember Wirtz only celebrated his 18th birthday in May and consider how much growth there is to come from Leverkusen’s prized asset.

Despite being so young, Wirtz is already important in Leverkusen's attacking production – he's been involved in 26 open-play attacking sequences in the Bundesliga this season, with only two players at the club involved in more. Of those 26, 12 have come as the creator of the chance, which is more than any Leverkusen team-mate.

"He will improve year by year. Although he already has a high level. His biggest strength and you could see that in all the years in the youth team, is that he gives his best in each game," added Rolfes. "Doesn't matter where he was playing or which team-mates he was playing with. The first team, U19, U13 etc, he was always giving his best. That is a key element in his development that he is able to adapt at higher levels but he has ambition to always improve and you have to improve.

"Sometimes improvement is also a little bit about changing your game. For sure the opponents want to defend him and watch him, so improvement is sometimes changing a little bit. I'm totally convinced he will have a great career because he has the right mindset to develop. If he keeps that, he is 18 and young, it's a really young guy and he has strengthen his personality etc – that’s normal. We all know how we've been at 18 but if he keeps his mindset and development, he will have a fantastic career."

Timo Werner scored a double as Germany became the first team to qualify for the 2022 World Cup thanks to a 4-0 win over North Macedonia in Monday's Group J clash.

Hansi Flick's side – who have now won all five games under their new head coach – seized the early initiative at the Tose Proeski Arena, with Timo Werner denied by the woodwork as the visitors registered 15 first-half shots.

However, Kai Havertz broke the deadlock after 50 minutes before Werner added a quickfire double to put the game out of the hosts' reach.

Jamal Musiala then added a late fourth and, with Armenia dropping points against Romania, Germany claimed an unassailable eight-point lead at the summit to quality for Qatar 2022.

Havertz teed up both Joshua Kimmich and Thomas Muller in the opening stages but neither could beat Stole Dimitrievski with headers, before Darko Velkovski nodded wide at the other end.

Serge Gnabry then poked narrowly wide and Werner, who was earlier denied from point-blank range by Dimitrievski, struck the left-hand post as Germany failed to make their 76.5 per cent first-half possession pay.

Flick's team, however, opened the scoring after the interval as Muller raced onto Gnabry's throughball before squaring for Havertz to tap into an empty net.

Werner was unfortunate to not double the lead after a ricochet off the North Macedonia goalkeeper 10 minutes later, but the Chelsea forward made amends.

Muller collected his second assist as he slotted through for Werner, who rifled an unstoppable right-footed volley into the bottom-right corner before curling into the same corner three minutes later following Florian Wirtz's offload.

Gnabry should have added a fourth but he could only volley over from Muller's chipped pass, though Musiala latched onto fellow substitute Karim Adeyemi's ball to roll into the bottom-right corner and seal the victory.

"If you have the ambition and quality, we count on you and give you the chance to develop. With development, there is also performance. That's why it's a great story for Florian but also for us as a club," Simon Rolfes told Stats Perform.

Bayer Leverkusen had money to splash after Chelsea paid a club-record fee to prise German star Kai Havertz from BayArena at the start of 2020-21. His absence was supposed to leave a glaring hole in North Rhine-Westphalia and prompt a frantic search in the transfer market.

But sporting director Rolfes and Leverkusen had other ideas. Rather than use the money recouped in the blockbuster Havertz transfer, Die Werkself opted to look in their own backyard for a replacement – 18-year-old teenage sensation Florian Wirtz.

Leverkusen's faith in youth and their clearly defined philosophy has served them well previously, and they're being rewarded once again by the club's latest wonderkid, who has put Havertz well and truly in the rear-view mirror as Europe's elite queue for his signature.

At home in the number 10 role behind a striker or even as a deep-lying playmaker, Wirtz can do it all on the pitch.

Leverkusen prised Wirtz from Cologne in 2020. Dubbed "the best midfielder to come through the club in 30 years" by local newspaper Kolner Express, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig and Liverpool were all circling after Wirtz captained boyhood team Cologne to Under-17 German Championship glory in 2019, but Leverkusen eventually won the race.

Rolfes had first watched Wirtz at the age of 13. He was immediately mesmerised by the Brauweiler-born sensation, who has firmly established himself in the Leverkusen XI, quickly becoming the new face of Die Werkself.

From his junior days, Wirtz has been great at exploiting gaps and creating space in midfield while churning out goalscoring chances with his devastating awareness. Not to mention his defence-splitting passing ability. Five years on and nothing has changed on the international stage.

"Extraordinary player," Rolfes told Stats Perform. "I saw him the first time when he was 13 and followed him all the time. Spoke with him before he moved to us, with the parents a lot of times and tried to convince them that it was the right step to come to us and accelerate his development. I and the whole club are very happy that he is with us. That's the interesting thing, I watched him the first time at 13 and he is still playing the same. 14,15, 16, always in that kind of style."

When a player breaks a record held by Kai at Leverkusen, it is a sign to stand up and take notice.

Wirtz was swiftly thrust into the first team, becoming Leverkusen's youngest-ever debutant at the age of 17 years and 16 days, eclipsing Havertz's record, in last season's 4-1 rout of Werder Bremen in 2019-20. After a handful of appearances in the coronavirus-hit campaign, Wirtz played 29 Bundesliga games, which yielded five goals and as many assists in the post-Havertz era in 2020-21. In February 2021, Wirtz became the first player in the league's history to score five goals before celebrating his 18th birthday.

So, when it comes to comparing Wirtz to Havertz through their first 42 Bundesliga appearances with Leverkusen, how do they stack up against each other?

Wirtz has an equal split between goals and assists (10 each), averaging his 20 goal involvements once every 148 minutes across his top-flight career so far. That's quicker than Havertz managed at the same stage of his Bundesliga career, with his 16 goal involvements in his first 42 apps coming at an average of 165 minutes.

Wirtz also proved a shade more productive in front of goal, with an expected goals per 90 average of 0.16 compared to Havertz's 0.14, but the now-Chelsea forward was able to get more involved in the average game with 65 touches per 90 compared to Wirtz's 58 per 90.

"I wouldn't say they're similar. They're for sure similar in terms of extraordinary qualities and potential for really big careers," Rolfes said. "I would say at the end, Kai plays a little bit more forward and is very good in going deep with a lot of speed. Sometimes it doesn’t look like it because he is so tall but he is incredibly fast. Very direct, fantastic shot with his left foot and a good header. With his height, a very good header of the ball.

"With Florian, I think from a positional sense he is a little bit deeper. More technique in small spaces I would say. Kai likes to use his speed. They are quite different. They unfortunately only played/trained half a year together. It would be nice to have them both together in the squad at the moment because one right foot, one left. They would fit very good together."

With so much attention from a very young age, it is easy for some players to get swept up amid the hype and interest. Not Wirtz.

Wirtz has continue to shatter records and dazzle in the Bundesliga. Against Mainz on matchday six of this season, the Germany international became the youngest player to score 10 goals in Germany’s top-flight, doing so 208 days younger than Lukas Podolski (18 years, 353 days for Cologne in 2004).

No player in the Bundesliga this season has more assists than Wirtz (five) through seven rounds.

With four league goals in just six appearances, he is already only one goal shy of matching last season's haul, despite an expected goals (xG) goal value of 1.0 – no other player has such a large difference between his goals and expected goals.

His nine goal involvements in this season's Bundesliga are only surpassed by Dortmund star Erling Haaland (10), while Wirtz has the best shot conversion rate (36.4 per cent) among all players with at least three goals in 2021-22.

As Wirtz goes from prospect to genuine star, it all comes down to his mindset.

"The attitude is very good. With players and we could see it with Kai Havertz, they know their quality. They are 18 and self-confident because they know about their quality. Special players have that – they can feel that, feel it directly on the pitch. Playing with other good players, they're able to handle it and adapt to the different speed of the game," said Rolfes.

"In that case, they are quite far [developed] and they know there's interest in them because also with 14, 15, 16 it's normal big clubs watched him play. With Florian and Kai, it's quite the same. They always know they’re interesting and extraordinary players."

In all competitions in 2021-22, Wirtz (11) is the only player in Europe's big-five leagues 18 or younger to be involved in seven or more goals, having already found the back of the net twice in the Europa League.

Wirtz has been involved in a goal across all competitions every 47 minutes so far this term – it is the best ratio of minutes per goal involvement of all players in Europe's top-five leagues with at least 500 minutes, ahead of Haaland (51 mins), Real Madrid's Karim Benzema (52 mins), Bayern talisman Robert Lewandowski (60 mins) and Liverpool star Mohamed Salah (65 mins).

"In the youth teams, the difference in the quality between him and others was much higher. The game in the youth is around them. Now, he also has a big influence on the game, but he has to position himself better to get the ball and use his quality. Players with extraordinary quality have the ability to find the right spaces but in professional teams they have to wait a little bit in their position and then use their quality," former Leverkusen midfielder Rolfes said. "Compared to the youth where they are doing everything."

It's a frightening thought when you remember Wirtz only celebrated his 18th birthday in May and how much growth there is to come from Leverkusen’s prized asset.

Despite being so young, Wirtz is already important in Leverkusen's attacking production – he's been involved in 26 open-play attacking sequences in the Bundesliga this season, with only two players at the club involved in more. Of those 26, 12 have come as the creator of the chance, which is more than any Leverkusen team-mate.

"He will improve year by year. Although he already has a high level. His biggest strength and you could see that in all the years in the youth team, is that he gives his best in each game," added Rolfes. "Doesn't matter where he was playing or which team-mates he was playing with. The first team, U19, U13 etc, he was always giving his best. That is a key element in his development that he is able to adapt at higher levels but he has ambition to always improve and you have to improve.

"Sometimes improvement is also a little bit about changing your game. For sure the opponents want to defend him and watch him, so improvement is sometimes changing a little bit. I'm totally convinced he will have a great career because he has the right mindset to develop. If he keeps that, he is 18 and young, it's a really young guy and he has strengthen his personality etc – that’s normal. We all know how we've been at 18 but if he keeps his mindset and development, he will have a fantastic career."

England will have to overcome a wretched record in European Championship knockout matches if they are to get past their old nemesis Germany in the round of 16 on Tuesday.

The Three Lions go into the match having never won a knockout game in 90 minutes at the Euros, with four of their previous six attempts ending level and two leading to defeats.

Four of those past instances went to penalty shootouts and England only progressed from one of them, against Spain in Euro 96.

That victory came at Wembley, so perhaps the locale of Tuesday's clash will at least provide England with an edge – after all, they are unbeaten in their 14 Euros and World Cup matches (excluding penalty shootouts) at the 'Home of Football'.

While former Germany international Stefan Effenberg suggested that all the pressure will be on England because of the home crowd, Three Lions manager Gareth Southgate senses an opportunity.

The rivalry may be weighted more towards England in terms of the significance attached to these fixtures, but Southgate was keen to impress on his players that history is within their grasp.

"It's a great opportunity for this team to make some history and give people memories of England-Germany fixtures for the future that are a little different to some of the ones they've been flooded with over the last few days, which mean absolutely nothing to them because they weren't born," Southgate said.

"The game is probably worthy of more than the second-round stage. We're playing against a very good side.

"They won't fear coming to Wembley. We'll have to play at our very best. We've got to be tactically, physically and psychologically well-prepared."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

England – Raheem Sterling

With Harry Kane faltering in the group stage, looking a shadow of the sharpshooter who is usually so reliable for Tottenham and England, the goalscoring burden has fallen on Sterling. Despite a disappointing second half to 2020-21, the Manchester City winger has scored both of the Three Lions' Euro 2020 goals, taking him to 14 in his past 19 appearances for his country after just two in his first 45 caps.

Germany – Kai Havertz

From an individual perspective, Havertz's first season at Chelsea was not especially impressive. Having been roundly criticised in England during 2020-21, he will surely be eager to catch the eye here, and given his start to the tournament, many would back him to do just that. He's already got two goals, though the fact his non-penalty xG of 2.7 is the highest of anyone in the tournament suggests he's been a threat beyond those two efforts. For example, the total xG of sequences he has been involved in (3.8) is bettered by only Pedri (4.6 - before Spain played Croatia) and Memphis Depay (4.4). Write him off at your peril.

KEY OPTA FACTS

- Germany's Ilkay Gundogan has scored twice at Wembley, for Borussia Dortmund in the 2013 Champions League final and for Manchester City in the Premier League. He could become just the second player to score at the ground for a club side and the German national team after Per Mertesacker.

- This will be the 13th meeting between England and Germany at Wembley. England won four of the first five such games (L1), including the 1966 World Cup final, but are winless in their previous seven against the Germans at the national stadium (D2 L5).

- This will be England's 300th international match at Wembley, with this the 77th match they will have played at the new site since it reopened in 2007. The Three Lions have won 187 times at this venue (D73 L39).

- Germany have reached at least the semi-final in each of the last three editions of the European Championship. Indeed, since the tournament was expanded in 1996, the Germans have reached at least the last four of the competition each time they have progressed to the knockout stages.

- Germany have conceded at least once in each of their previous eight matches at major tournaments (Euros and World Cup), since a 3-0 win against Slovakia at this stage of Euro 2016. Only once have had they had a longer run without a major tournament clean sheet, which was in their first nine World Cup matches between 1934 and 1954.