Germany coach Joachim Low has underlined the importance of Mario Gomez to the world champions ahead of their international friendly against Italy.
The Wolfsburg man has endured a somewhat difficult start to the 2016-17 campaign, partially due to injury, and failed to find the net in last week's 8-0 World Cup qualifying win over San Marino.
Low sees no reason for concern, though, and believes the 31-year-old is on the right track again.
"Mario got injured after Euro 2016 and that set him back a bit," Low said at a news conference.
"He is a striker who is a great finisher. He has some incredible quality, with his left foot, his right foot and his head. He showed that at the Euros.
"He had a great year with Besiktas last season with a lot of goals and is on the right track at Wolfsburg as well. He is very important to us."
Germany beat Italy on penalties in the Euro 2016 quarter-finals and Low expects the Azzurri to put in a similar performance to the one they faced in France.
"Italy's team is not too different from the team we faced at Euro 2016," he added.
"Italy have their own style of play, which they have been using for years. We expect a tactically strong Italy that will try to put us under pressure. They are capable of causing us problems with their attack.
"I think both teams will feel less pressure than during the Euros."
