hopes that Löw might favour an orthodox No9, at least against weaker opposition. Raphael Honigstein

Possible breakthrough at Russia 2018 Julian Brandt (Bayer Leverkusen).

World ranking 3.

Odds to win World Cup 9-2.

Next match England (friendly), 22 March.





Belgium

There are only two big questions marks for Roberto Martínez at the moment: will Vincent Kompany ever be fit again and will Axel Witsel suffer after moving to China? Martínez is planning for a future without the Manchester City defender but added that he expects him to be back for the next international game, after the season, against Estonia. Martínez, as we know, likes to attack. The all-out-attack tactic. With Belgium he plays a three-man defence with a midfield that has Thomas Meunier on the right and the attacking Yannick Carrasco on the left.Ebuehi, Noah Bazee and Victor Osimhen are 21, 20 and 18 respectively. Isaac Success, who is making a comeback after missing out on a previous squads, is 21. What this means is the average age of the latest invitees comes to 23.16 years, the lowest in recent years. The German seems impervious to calls to include players from the local league in his squad, with only one, the goalkeeper Ikechukwu Ezenwa, called up. Rohr’s 4-3-3 system appears built to exploit the players’ pace and energy with excellent technique, using the captain, Mikel Jon Obi, as its pivot. Colin Udoh

Possible breakthrough at Russia 2018 Victor Osimhen (Wolfsburg).

World ranking 41.

Odds to win World Cup 150-1.

Next match Senegal, 23 March.

Japan

Japan are phasing out the generation that peaked somewhere between the 2010