Miroslav Klose saluted "exemplary" Niclas Fullkrug after the Germany striker's goalscoring World Cup debut against Spain.

The Werder Bremen forward was named in Hansi Flick's squad for the finals after netting 10 times in 14 Bundesliga appearances this season, a tally only bettered by Christophe Nkunku in the German top flight (12).

Fullkrug scored the winner against Oman on his debut earlier this month, before snatching the equaliser following a lively cameo appearance as a substitute in Die Nationalmannschaft's 1-1 draw with Spain on Sunday.

The 29-year-old, who became the first substitute to score for Germany at the World Cup since Mario Gotze's winner against Argentina in the 2014 final, has caught the eye of former striker Klose.

The World Cup's all-time leading scorer does not know if Fullkrug will start the four-time champions' crucial Group E clash with Costa Rica on Thursday, which they must win to stand any chance of qualifying for the last 16.

But Klose believes he would boost their attacking threat, telling Bild: "He has a certain presence in the penalty box and a good nose for situations.

"He brings a good package for a striker - good finishing inside the box, he's two-footed and strong with headers.

"Costa Rica will certainly sit deep, but I don't know Hansi's game plan. For me, it's important that when Niclas gets his minutes, he should use the opportunity.

"As soon as he's on the pitch, the opponent's focus will shift away from Jamal [Musiala], Thomas [Muller] or Leroy [Sane], because there will be someone in the penalty box to watch out for. That will automatically free up space for the others.

"I heard his interviews after the Spain game and immediately noticed that he doesn't get carried away. He knows that more still has to come.

"When I see how he conducts himself and from what I heard from the team, I can only say: that's exemplary. Football needs such guys."

Fullkrug revealed he used to look up to Klose, who also enjoyed a clinical spell with Bremen during his playing career, scoring 63 goals in 132 appearances between 2004 and 2007. 

"That's really nice to hear, because it means I did something right as a footballer," the 44-year-old added. "Niclas' statement is a big compliment for me. I'm even happier that a striker from my ex-club has the chance to show what he can do."

It's getting close. We may have had to wait an extra five months than usual, but the 2022 World Cup is now just 100 days away.

A likely last hurrah on the World Cup stage awaits superstars Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, while new names will break through and rising talent will be put to the test.

Eight nations have been champions of the tournament that was first staged in 1930, and it will be France looking to defend the title this time.

Many of us pride ourselves on remembering World Cup trivia from past tournaments, but just how good is your knowledge?

These Opta-assisted 20 questions should sort the group-stage flops from the champions of World Cup quizzing. The answers are below, but don't cheat!

The first...

1. Name the English boss who at Qatar 2022 will become the first to coach a team at both the men's and women's World Cups?

2. Gregg Berhalter will become the first man to serve as player and manager of the USA at the World Cup. He appeared at the 2002 tournament and is now boss of the American side. To which present-day Premier League club did Berhalter then belong, becoming their first World Cup player?

3. Who became the first player to score a Golden Goal winner at the World Cup when he netted for France against Paraguay in a 1998 last-16 clash?

4. In the 2018 showdown between France and Croatia, who became the first player in World Cup final history to score for both teams?

5. Qatar will attempt to become the first nation from the AFC confederation to win their first World Cup finals match. Ten of the previous 11 have lost (including Israel in 1970), but who were the team who in 1982 managed a 1-1 draw against Czechoslovakia?

The last...

6. There have been 52 hat-tricks in the tournament's history, but who was the last player to score a treble in the knockout stages of the World Cup?

7. A goalkeeper won his 159th and final international cap at the 2018 finals, when he became the oldest player to appear at the World Cup, at the age of 45 years and 161 days. He saved a penalty in a 2-1 defeat for his team against Saudi Arabia. Who was that goalkeeper and what team did he play for?

8. Ghana reached the World Cup quarter-finals in 2010 and Senegal did so at the 2002 finals. But who were the first team from Africa to make it to the last eight, doing so at the 1990 finals in Italy?

9. Brazil last lost a group game at the World Cup in 1998, since when they have won 12 and drawn three games at the first-round stage. Which team beat them in that 1998 tournament?

10. Cameroon have lost each of their past seven games at the World Cup (between 2002 and 2014). Only one team have ever lost more games in a row in the competition's history – nine between 1930 and 1958. Who were that team?

The most...

11. Just Fontaine scored his 13 World Cup goals in just six games for France. The competition's all-time record scorer is Germany's Miroslav Klose, who netted 16 times for his country in how many appearances: 22, 23 or 24?

12. Who will become the only team to have appeared at all 22 editions of the World Cup when they take part in Qatar 2022?

13. Iran will be making their sixth appearance at the World Cup and have never gone beyond the group stage. Which country has made the most appearances (eight) without making it past the first round?

14. Which forward had the most goal involvements of all players in European qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup, scoring 12 and assisting six times in 10 games?

15. Since 1966, only three players have completed more than 12 dribbles in a single World Cup game, with Brazil's Jairzinho achieving 13 against Paraguay in 1970 and Paul Gascoigne matching that total for England against Cameroon in 1990. Who managed the most – 15 in a game against Italy at the 1994 tournament?

The GOATs...

16. Which superstar, who scored eight times and provided eight assists in 21 World Cup games, also holds the record for the most handball decisions given against a player at the tournament (seven) since records began?

17. Who holds the record for the most minutes played in World Cup history, having featured in 2,216 minutes of finals action?

18. Portugal great Cristiano Ronaldo is one of only four players to score in four different World Cup tournaments. He will attempt to go one better this year, but Ronaldo currently sits alongside Pele, Klose and which other player?

19. Between them, Ronaldo (seven) and Lionel Messi (six) have managed 13 World Cup goals. How many of those goals came in the knockout rounds?

20. Ronaldo is one of just two European players to have either scored and/or assisted a goal in each of the last five major international tournaments (World Cup/European Championship). Who is the other player to have managed the feat?

Answers:

1. John Herdman (Canada – he managed Canada Women at the 2015 Women's World Cup)
2. Crystal Palace
3. Laurent Blanc (France)
4. Mario Mandzukic (Croatia)
5. Kuwait.
6. Tomas Skuhravy (for Czechoslovakia against Costa Rica, last 16, 1990)
7. Essam El Hadary (Egypt)
8. Cameroon
9. Norway
10. Mexico
11. 24
12. Brazil
13. Scotland
14. Memphis Depay (Netherlands)
15. Jay-Jay Okocha (Nigeria)
16. Diego Maradona (Argentina)
17. Paolo Maldini (Italy)
18. Uwe Seeler (West Germany)
19. Zero
20. Ivan Perisic (Croatia)

Miroslav Klose pointed to the influence of Hansi Flick on his fledgling touchline career as the World Cup record-breaker began his first job as a head coach.

Germany great Klose has taken over as boss of Austrian Bundesliga team SCR Altach. The player whose career haul of 16 World Cup goals remains unmatched was presented to the media on Monday.

The 44-year-old Klose had a spell as an assistant with the Germany national team during Joachim Low's tenure, and worked at Bayern Munich under Flick in the 2020-21 campaign, having previously spent two years with the Bavarians' under-17 team.

Bayern won the Bundesliga, DFL-Supercup, UEFA Super Cup and Club World Cup trophies in the season when Klose was involved in the first-team squad. Flick then departed to become Germany boss, and Klose also left.

"I learned a lot from Flick, he's fantastic in every respect," Klose said.

Altach narrowly avoided relegation in the 2021-22 season, and Klose's impact will be closely watched.

He said: "I'm incredibly happy. I am full of anticipation and have been received in a very friendly manner. I'm able to work where others go on holiday.

"I have a lot of hard work ahead of me. It is important the team shows heart and passion. We have to work out everything step by step, so it's also important that the team communicates with me."

Klose said he would allow himself "time to develop" as a coach, declaring the team must have targets without yet identifying those.

"I don't know how fast that will go. But I think it's incredibly important to have goals," Klose said. "I put myself under a lot of pressure. I have clear ideas. It will be a tough road. I probably need to lower my expectations."

Klose won 137 caps and scored a record 71 goals in a distinguished Germany career, in which he reached the finals of the 2002 World Cup and Euro 2008, before helping Die Mannschaft win the World Cup in 2014.

The winner of the Golden Shoe at the 2006 tournament on home soil also played elite club football with Bayern, Lazio, Kaiserslautern and Werder Bremen.

Miroslav Klose has secured his first senior job as a head coach after taking over as boss of Austrian Bundesliga team SCR Altach.

The appointment of the Germany great, whose career haul of 16 World Cup goals remains a competition record, was announced on Friday.

The news was portrayed as a surprise appointment in Austria. Altach said Klose will sign his contract on Sunday and be presented on Monday.

Klose, the 44-year-old former striker, retired from playing in 2016 after five years with Serie A side Lazio and has since had spells working as an assistant with the Germany national team, and at Bayern Munich.

He was head coach of the Bayern under-17 team for two seasons and served as first-team assistant to Hansi Flick in the 2020-21 campaign.

Altach said in a statement that Klose's former Bayern coaching colleague Slaven Skeledzic would become an assistant coach, once his release from the German champions, where he remains employed, can be secured.

Klose said of his challenge: "I'm really looking forward to my new job here in Altach. It was just that positive feeling right from the start that I have to have, that I'm in the right place here.

"The first discussions with those in charge were so open that it was clear to me that I want to do this. Now I can hardly wait to get to know the team, the people in the club and of course the fans."

Klose won two Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal doubles during four years as a player with Bayern, from 2007 to 2011.

He won 137 caps and scored a record 71 goals in a distinguished Germany career, in which he reached the finals of the 2002 World Cup and Euro 2008, before helping Die Mannschaft win the World Cup in 2014.

The winner of the Golden Shoe at the 2006 tournament on home soil also played elite club football with Kaiserslautern and Werder Bremen.

Altach managing director Christoph Langle offered assurance that the club were not merely attracted by Klose's high profile.

Langle said: "Miro Klose is a very big name in football. But it's not about the name for us, it's about Miro Klose's personality, his skills as a coach and what is very important to us at SCR Altach: the people.

"Known as a hard, down-to-earth worker, Miroslav has risen to world class. The values ​​he stands for are a perfect match for our club and his football skills are undisputed anyway."

The draw is out, and the World Cup suddenly feels a lot closer, with the elite preparing to go for glory at Qatar 2022.

A likely last hurrah on the World Cup stage awaits superstars Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, while new names will break through and rising talent will be put to the test.

Eight nations have been champions of the tournament that was first staged in 1930, and it will be France looking to defend the title this time.

Many of us pride ourselves on remembering World Cup trivia from past tournaments, but just how good is your knowledge?

These Opta-assisted 20 questions should sort the group-stage flops from the champions of World Cup quizzing. The answers are below, but don't cheat!

The first...

1. Name the English boss who at Qatar 2022 will become the first to coach a team at both the men's and women's World Cups?

2. Gregg Berhalter will become the first man to serve as player and manager of the USA at the World Cup. He appeared at the 2002 tournament and is now boss of the American side. To which present-day Premier League club did Berhalter then belong, becoming their first World Cup player?

3. Who became the first player to score a Golden Goal winner at the World Cup when he netted for France against Paraguay in a 1998 last-16 clash?

4. In the 2018 showdown between France and Croatia, who became the first player in World Cup final history to score for both teams?

5. Qatar will attempt to become the first nation from the AFC confederation to win their first World Cup finals match. Ten of the previous 11 have lost (including Israel in 1970), but who were the team who in 1982 managed a 1-1 draw against Czechoslovakia?

The last...

6. There have been 52 hat-tricks in the tournament's history, but who was the last player to score a treble in the knockout stages of the World Cup?

7. A goalkeeper won his 159th and final international cap at the 2018 finals, when he became the oldest player to appear at the World Cup, at the age of 45 years and 161 days. He saved a penalty in a 2-1 defeat for his team against Saudi Arabia. Who was that goalkeeper and what team did he play for?

8. Ghana reached the World Cup quarter-finals in 2010 and Senegal did so at the 2002 finals. But who were the first team from Africa to make it to the last eight, doing so at the 1990 finals in Italy?

9. Brazil last lost a group game at the World Cup in 1998, since when they have won 12 and drawn three games at the first-round stage. Which team beat them in that 1998 tournament?

10. Cameroon have lost each of their past seven games at the World Cup (between 2002 and 2014). Only one team have ever lost more games in a row in the competition's history – nine between 1930 and 1958. Who were that team?

The most...

11. Just Fontaine scored his 13 World Cup goals in just six games for France. The competition's all-time record scorer is Germany's Miroslav Klose, who netted 16 times for his country in how many appearances: 22, 23 or 24?

12. Who will become the only team to have appeared at all 22 editions of the World Cup when they take part in Qatar 2022?

13. Iran will be making their sixth appearance at the World Cup and have never gone beyond the group stage. Which country has made the most appearances (eight) without making it past the first round?

14. Which forward had the most goal involvements of all players in European qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup, scoring 12 and assisting six times in 10 games?

15. Since 1966, only three players have completed more than 12 dribbles in a single World Cup game, with Brazil's Jairzinho achieving 13 against Paraguay in 1970 and Paul Gascoigne matching that total for England against Cameroon in 1990. Who managed the most – 15 in a game against Italy at the 1994 tournament?

The GOATs...

16. Which superstar, who scored eight times and provided eight assists in 21 World Cup games, also holds the record for the most handball decisions given against a player at the tournament (seven) since records began?

17. Who holds the record for the most minutes played in World Cup history, having featured in 2,216 minutes of finals action?

18. Portugal great Cristiano Ronaldo is one of only four players to score in four different World Cup tournaments. He will attempt to go one better this year, but Ronaldo currently sits alongside Pele, Klose and which other player?

19. Between them, Ronaldo (seven) and Lionel Messi (six) have managed 13 World Cup goals. How many of those goals came in the knockout rounds?

20. Ronaldo is one of just two European players to have either scored and/or assisted a goal in each of the last five major international tournaments (World Cup/European Championship). Who is the other player to have managed the feat?

Answers:

1. John Herdman (Canada – he managed Canada Women at the 2015 Women's World Cup)
2. Crystal Palace
3. Laurent Blanc (France)
4. Mario Mandzukic (Croatia)
5. Kuwait.
6. Tomas Skuhravy (for Czechoslovakia against Costa Rica, last 16, 1990)
7. Essam El Hadary (Egypt)
8. Cameroon
9. Norway
10. Mexico
11. 24
12. Brazil
13. Scotland
14. Memphis Depay (Netherlands)
15. Jay-Jay Okocha (Nigeria)
16. Diego Maradona (Argentina)
17. Paolo Maldini (Italy)
18. Uwe Seeler (West Germany)
19. Zero
20. Ivan Perisic (Croatia)

Hansi Flick has ended weeks of speculation over his Bayern Munich future by confirming he wishes to leave the club at the end of this season.

After taking over from Niko Kovac in November 2019, the 56-year-old led the Bavarians to a Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal and Champions League treble in his first campaign in charge.

He added a UEFA Super Cup, DFL-Supercup and the Club World Cup this term, with another top-flight title also looking likely after Bayern opened up a seven-point lead on Saturday.

However, it has recently been reported that Flick was considering his future and, speaking after a 3-2 win over Wolfsburg, the German coach revealed he will depart at the end of the season.

That means one of the biggest jobs in European football is about to become available - so who is in the running to step into the role?

Julian Nagelsmann

One of the most well-regarded young coaches in Europe, Julian Nagelsmann has long been admired by the decision-makers at Bayern Munich.

With speculation mounting over Flick earlier this week, the 33-year-old was forced to deny that discussions with the Bavarians had already begun.

"There have been no talks and we are currently in no talks," he said.

It has been previously reported that RB Leipzig would demand €15-20m to release their head coach from his contract.

But Bayern could well view that as a snip for a manager who has long been touted for the top job in German football and has previously attracted interest from Real Madrid.

Jurgen Klopp

The last manager to deny Bayern the Bundesliga title, Jurgen Klopp is another man who Die Roten have made no secret of their desire to appoint one day.

Despite his ties with Borussia Dortmund, the 53-year-old has never publicly declared that he would not make the move to Munich at some point in his career.

He has, however, recently signalled his intention to see out the remainder of his contract at Liverpool.

Amid links to the soon-to-be-vacant Germany job, Klopp said: "You sign a contract and you normally try to stick to that contract, don't you?"

Ralf Rangnick

Schalke, Eintracht Frankfurt, the German national team - nobody seems to know where Ralf Rangnick might go next. 

Out of work since leaving a role with Red Bull last year, the German's appointment would not require any costly negotiations with a rival.

And, while he might represent a slightly left-field choice to be the new Bayern boss, nobody can doubt his coaching credentials.

So many of the managers the Munich club covet have been influenced by Rangnick, so why not go for the original?

Joachim Low

Flick's imminent availability comes amid strong links with the role of head coach for the German national team.

That vacancy has come up as a result of Joachim Low revealing that he will bring a 15-year stint in the job to a close after the European Championship.

So, could the 61-year-old take on his first job in club management since he took charge of Austria Wien for the 2003-04 season?

Low's only trophy in German football came when he led Stuttgart to the DFB-Pokal in 1997, but his CV is certainly enhanced by that World Cup win in 2014.

Miroslav Klose

Having enjoyed remarkable success since Flick stepped up from his role as assistant to Kovac, Bayern could choose to go down a similar route following his departure by appointing Miroslav Klose.

The Germany legend moved up from his role as U17s coach over the summer to become second in command for the first team and might be a surprise choice for another promotion at the end of the season.

The 42-year-old is popular with supporters, though his lack of experience might count against him given the quality of the other candidates.

Still, if Bayern value continuity above all else in their search for a Flick replacement, don't count Klose out.

Hansi Flick paid tribute to coaches Toni Tapalovic and Miroslav Klose after Bayern Munich earned a 3-1 win over Werder Bremen on Saturday.

The Bundesliga champions extended their lead at the summit to five points thanks to goals from Leon Goretzka, Serge Gnabry and Robert Lewandowski at Weser Stadium.

The first of those came via a corner routine that saw Thomas Muller's near-post flick-on headed powerfully home by Goretzka.

Speaking after the match, Flick revealed that goalkeeping coach Tapalovic and assistant Klose came up with the set-piece.

He said: "It was a safe and more than deserved victory that could have been bigger. 

"We implemented what we set out to do, to have a good position on the pitch and to put our opponents under pressure. 

"I'm particularly pleased that we took the lead with a corner kick, and Toni Tapalovic and Miro Klose came up with something. That is thanks to them and a compliment to their work."

However, Flick was not impressed with the late concession of a consolation goal, which saw Bayern's high line exposed.

He added: "Of course the goal annoyed me. But our back four and the team in the entire defensive network did very well, we hardly allowed any chances. 

"I am very satisfied with the result, compliments to the team."

Goalscorer Goretzka echoed his manager's sentiments, expressing both delight over the well-worked nature of the opening goal and frustration over Werder marking the scoresheet.

He said: "It was a convincing performance. It's not easy in Bremen because we've struggled [there] over the past few years. 

"The opponent was very deep, so of course a goal like that [the corner] is good. We had a good plan in possession of the ball, so we were able to prevent the counterattack very well, except at 3-1, which annoys us a lot because we wanted to play to zero."