Michael Ballack (born September 26, 1976 in Görlitz,
Saxony) is a German football player. A midfielder,
he is the current captain of the German national
team, and plays club football for Chelsea F.C. in
the English Premier League, captaining them on some
occasions. He is known for his strength and
precision passing, with a powerful header and shot.
Ballack first gained attention at Bayer Leverkusen
where he operated as the central midfielder, taking
on both defensive and attacking responsibilities.
Later in his career, at FC Bayern Munich, under the
guidance of Ottmar Hitzfeld and Felix Magath,
Ballack played in a deeper role, where he went
forward less often and instead concentrated on
protecting the back four and distributing the ball.
However, he remained a box-to-box midfielder for the
German national team. Ballack is one of the most
versatile soccer players in the world: he can easily
play defensively as well as offensively.
He is capable with both his left and right foot, as
well as in the air. These attributes earned him the
German player of the year award on three occasions
(2002, 2003, 2005). He is one of Germany's leading
sports icons of recent times. Pelé named Ballack
among the world's greatest 125 living footballers in
FIFA's 2004 FIFA 100
Then, in 2004, the national team coach Jürgen
Klinsmann elected Ballack as captain. Following
Germany's third place finish in the World Cup in
summer 2006, the new Germany head coach Joachim Löw
chose to keep Ballack as his national team captain.
Ballack has worn the number 13 shirt for every club
that he has played for, as well as the German
national team.
Ballack and his longtime girlfriend Simone Lambe
have three children: Louis (born August 16, 2001),
Emilio (September 19, 2002), and Jordi (born March
17, 2005).They are going to marry in summer 2008.
