Germany forward Lukas Podolski has insisted that the next natural step for his national side is to win the World Cup, after two strong performances in the tournament.

A young German side came third in 2006 and followed it up with the same showing on home soil four years later, and Podolski wants the side, now in their peak, to go two steps further in Brazil.

"At the World Cup in 2006, our team wasn't a mature one but on the other hand no-one thought that we'd go so far," he told Fakt.pl.

"We reached the third place and it was a sign that we are moving towards the right direction. In the following years we also played very well and now it's time for the next step. We go to Brazil to fight for winning the title."

Germany take on Portugal in their opening game on Monday afternoon.