Thomas Mueller and Joshua Kimmich get Germany off to a winning start in World Cup defence

Bayern Munich teammates Thomas Mueller and Joshua Kimmich fired title-holders Germany to a commanding 3-0 win away to Norway in their opening 2018 World Cup qualifier on Sunday.

Mueller struck in the 16th minute at the Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo before Kimmich netted Germany’s second goal on the stroke of half-time.

Mueller then scored again on the hour to ensure a winning start for Joachim Loew’s team in group C as the world champions set off on the road to the finals in Russia.

Germany top the group after the opening round of matches, with Azerbaijan also claiming a 1-0 victory against San Marino and Northern Ireland holding Czech Republic to a 0-0 draw.

“We can always find things to improve, but generally speaking, we were on the right track tonight,” Mueller said. “We’re very happy, even if there is room for improvement.”

Loew added: “I think we played a good match, we dominated our opponents. Norway weren’t at their best tonight, they never got into the match but that’s also because we played well.”