Germany midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger has praised the focus of his teammates after their 6-1 hammering of Republic of Ireland in Dublin on Friday night.

Germany were unstoppable in attack, but Schweinsteiger has insisted that a big part of the performance was how the defence coped with Ireland's aerial threat.

"We put in a very focused performance," Goal.com quotes Schweinsteiger as saying. "I think everyone did a fine job.

"For the defence, it wasn't easy to deal with the long balls. We are well on our way."

Schweinsteiger captained Germany as Phillip Lahm was suspended.