Defending champion Germany announced its squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup on Twitter. Mesut Özil and İlkay Gündoğan, two German players of Turkish origin, were named in the selected 23-man final squad.

Manchester City winger Leroy Sane was the surprise absentee as Germany coach Joachim Low preferred Bayer Leverkusen's Julian Brandt. This season, Sane scored 10 goals and had 15 assists in 32 English Premier League appearances. Germany will face Mexico, Sweden and South Korea in Group F in Russia.

The World Cup will be held between June 14 and July 15. Meanwhile, Beşiktaş's Croatian defender Domagoj Vida was also named in his country's squad for Russia. Vida, who arrived in Istanbul from Ukraine's Dynamo Kiev midseason, scored one goal in 13 Turkish Spor Toto Super League appearances. In the World Cup, Croatia will take on Argentina, Iceland and Nigeria in Group D.