Klopp's first match as Germany coach is Thursday in Amsterdam. Xavi's first as Netherlands coach is the same game.

Jürgen Klopp and Xavi Hernández each coach a national team for the first time on Thursday, against each other.

Netherlands v Germany at the Johan Cruijff Arena in Amsterdam, Thursday 24 September. Kickoff is 8.45pm in Amsterdam, 2.45pm ET, 11.45am PT. 12

Both teams went out of the World Cup in the round of 32, 1-1 after extra time, beaten on penalties — the Netherlands by Morocco, Germany by Paraguay. 3

Xavi is the first foreigner to coach the Netherlands since the 1978 World Cup, hired to bring back the possession football that Ronald Koeman and Louis van Gaal were accused of giving up. 4 He met his 26 players for the first time on Monday, 21 September. "I can promise that we will play with intensity, with passion, with a good rhythm," he said. 5 His captain needed convincing too: Virgil van Dijk had been weighing up his international future, the pair met in Liverpool, and Van Dijk is staying. 6 Frenkie de Jong is out of the squad with the knee injury he brought back from the World Cup. 7

Klopp, who took over in July, called up 44 players and split them into two groups, so Florian Wirtz, Nick Woltemade and Karim Adeyemi are being held back for Serbia and Greece. 8 The group facing the Dutch carries Kai Havertz, Jamal Musiala and captain Joshua Kimmich, with Marc-André ter Stegen in goal now that Manuel Neuer has retired. 89

Verdict: both squads met for the first time on Monday, so neither side will be finished. Germany have Musiala and Kimmich available, and the Dutch are missing Frenkie de Jong. Germany are the likelier winners.