'The Germans always win'

"Football is a simple game, 22 men chase the ball for 82 minutes and the Germans get a player sent off so 21 men chase the ball for 13 minutes and at the end the Germans somehow... win," the former England captain wrote on Twitter.

Kroos struck a curling free-kick in the 95th minute to seal victory in Sochi on Saturday, which keeps alive their hopes of reaching the knockout stage in Russia after they lost their opening match to Mexico.

The win came with 10 men after German centre-back Jerome Boateng was sent off for a second bookable offence late on.

Lineker, 57, once famously said: "Football is a simple game - 22 men chase a ball for 90 minutes and at the end, the Germans always win."

The rueful comment came after England lost on penalties to Germany in the semi-finals of the 1990 World Cup.