Per Mertesacker collects trophy on behalf of German national team

Per Mertesacker attended a ceremony in Leipzig last night to collect an award on behalf of his former international teammates.

The Arsenal centre-back retired from international football following Germany's World Cup triumph in the summer and picked up the 'Golden Henne' honour at an awards dinner in the west-German city.

The giant defender posted on Facebook: "I was in Leipzig/Germany last night to receive the "Goldene Henne" for our national team. Cool to have a weekend off."

Germany take on Ireland on Tuesday night as they look to get their Euro 2016 qualifying campaign back on track following last night's 2-0 loss to rivals Poland.