Rampant Germany receive Löw praise

In defeating the Republic of Ireland 6-1 on Friday, Germany not only took a stranglehold on Group C but also stretched their unbeaten run in away FIFA World Cup qualifiers to 38 – a sequence dating back to 1934.

The emphatic victory in Dublin – courtesy of two goals apiece from Marco Reus and Toni Kroos, a Mesut Özil penalty and a further effort from Miroslav Klose – was one which understandably delighted coach Joachim Löw. His side are three points clear at the top of the section going into Tuesday's visit of Sweden, who have won their opening two fixtures.

"The team were focused in their performance, something which was noticeable in training this week," said Löw after the Nationalmannschaft's third victory from as many outings in the group. "We deserved to win by this margin. Ireland lacked ideas and often opted for the long ball forward without creating any real pressure. We showed a much better level of organisation in defence than in the past few games."

Bastian Schweinsteiger, who replaced the suspended Philipp Lahm as captain at the Dublin Arena, said: "Everyone delivered what was expected of them. We are on the right path, but we still have to improve in order to perform when it matters and thus give us the chance to win trophies."

Lifting silverware was not at the forefront of Klose's mind at full time. The match in the Irish capital gave the S.S. Lazio striker his 125th cap, a milestone he marked by registering his side's fourth goal.

"It was nice to be able to score in my 125th game for Germany and help the team win the game," said the 34-year-old, whose international goal tally stands at an impressive 65. "If we manage to pass the ball around like we did, we are capable of scoring goals and recording victories like the one today."

Reus, whose two goals before half-time effectively ended the game as a contest, added: "We had clear aims for this game. Our coach prepared us very well and we immediately seized control of the match, but unfortunately weren't able to create clear chances. Once we took the lead, we were visibly more comfortable and delivered a solid performance."