Brighton & Hove Albion's Pascal Gross receives first Germany call-up

The 32-year-old has established himself as a key player for the Seagulls since joining the club from FC Ingolstadt 04 in 2017, making 217 appearances across all competitions.

Gross recently became Brighton's all-time leading scorer in the Premier League when he netted his 27th top-flight goal in the 3-1 home defeat to West Ham United last weekend, while he has also chipped in with 39 assists for the Seagulls in all tournaments.

The versatile midfielder, who has also operated at right-back during his time at Brighton, is now one of 24 players selected in Hansi Flick's Germany squad for the upcoming friendly fixtures against Japan and France next month.

Flick has made a total of seven changes to his senior squad, with Serge Gnabry, Niklas Sule, Felix Nmecha, Jonathan Tah, Kevin Schade and the uncapped Oliver Baumann all returning after missing out on previous selections for numerous reasons.

Notable omissions include Bayern Munich midfielder Leon Goretzka and RB Leipzig forward Timo Werner, while 117-cap goalkeeper Manuel Neuer is also absent as he continues his rehabilitation from a broken leg.

Germany are scheduled to face Japan at the Volkswagen Arena on September 9 before welcoming 2022 World Cup finalists France to Westfalenstadion three days later.

GERMANY'S 24-MAN SQUAD IN FULL:

Goalkeepers: Oliver Baumann (Hoffenheim), Marc-Andre ter Stegen (Barcelona), Kevin Trapp (Eintracht Frankfurt)

Defenders: Emre Can (Borussia Dortmund), Robin Gosens (Union Berlin), Benjamin Henrichs (RB Leipzig), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich), Felix Nmecha (Borussia Dortmund), Antonio Rudiger (Real Madrid), Nico Schlotterbeck, Niklas Sule (both Borussia Dortmund), Jonathan Tah (Bayer Leverkusen), Malick Thiaw (AC Milan)

Midfielders/Attackers: Julian Brandt (Borussia Dortmund), Niclas Fullkrug (Werder Bremen), Serge Gnabry (Bayern Munich), Pascal Gross (Brighton & Hove Albion), Ilkay Gundogan (Barcelona), Kai Havertz (Arsenal), Jonas Hofmann (Bayer Leverkusen), Leroy Sane (Bayern Munich), Kevin Schade (Brentford), Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen)