(AP Photo/Daniel Maurer) "Eds note: German spelling of munich is Muenchen")

Mueller, Hunt called up for Germany

By NESHA STARCEVIC,

FRANKFURT (AP) Thomas Mueller of Bayern Munich and Aaron Hunt of Werder Bremen were called up Friday for Germany's friendlies next week against Chile and Ivory Coast.

The two midfielders have not previously played for the national team. Mueller will be in the squad only for Wednesday's match against Ivory Coast because he is also in the under-21 team set to play Northern Ireland next Friday, coach Joachim Loew said.

Striker Stefan Kiessling of Bayer Leverkusen, who leads the Bundesliga with seven goals, returns to the squad for the first time since March.

Forward Mario Gomez is also in the squad despite losing his place in the starting lineup of Bayern Munich.

Germany plays Chile in Cologne on Nov. 14 and Ivory Coast in Gelsenkirchen four days later, the first friendlies since the three-time champions qualified for the World Cup.

The 20-year-old Mueller has been one of the revelations of the season so far, becoming a starter for Bayern under new coach Louis van Gaal and scoring some important goals.

"Thomas should spend a few days with us to get to know the atmosphere in the national team," Loew said.

Loew overruled objections from Bayern officials, who thought it was too early for Mueller to be called up for international duty.

The 23-year-old Hunt, whose mother is English, has become one of Werder's top players this season after overcoming a series of injuries and has scored three goals.

"We have the possibility to give him a chance now," Loew said. "He has played consistently well this season and has progressed."

Both Hunt and Mueller can play as forwards or attacking midfielders.

Hannover goalkeeper Robert Enke is not in the 24-man squad after only recently overcoming a bacterial infection. Stuttgart defender Serdar Tasci was scheduled to return, but his club said Friday a foot injury would keep him sidelined for several weeks, possibly even until the end of the year.

Midfielder Simon Rolfes of Bayer Leverkusen and Cacau of Stuttgart are also out with injuries.

Germany:

Goalkeepers: Rene Adler (Bayer Leverkusen), Manuel Neuer (Schalke), Tim Wiese (Werder Bremen).

Defenders: Andreas Beck (Hoffenheim), Jerome Boateng (Hamburger SV), Arne Friedrich (Hertha Berlin), Philipp Lahm (Bayern Munich) Per Mertesacker (Werder Bremen), Marcel Schaefer (Wolfsburg), Serdar Tasci (Stuttgart), Heiko Westermann (Schalke).

Midfielder: Michael Ballack (Chelsea), Christian Gentner (Wolfsburg), Thomas Hitzlsperger (Stuttgart), Aaron Hunt (Werder Bremen), Marko Marin (Werder Bremen), Thomas Mueller (Bayern Munich), Mesut Oezil (Werder Bremen), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Bayern Munich), Piotr Trochowski (Hamburger SV).

Forwards: Mario Gomez (Bayern Munich), Stefan Kiessling (Bayer Leverkusen), Miroslav Klose (Bayern Munich), Lukas Podolski (FC Cologne).

Updated November 6, 2009