Ballack began his career as a youth at enterprise sports community BSG Motor "Fritz Heckert" Karl-Marx-Stadt in 1983. He then joined the youth department offootball clubFC Karl-Marx-Stadt.[5] Ballack made his debut forGermany's under-21 side on 26 March 1996. Although the team were relegated in his first season, his performances in theRegionalliga the following season led to a transfer to 1. FC Kaiserslautern in 1997. He won theBundesliga in his first season at the club, his first major honour. He became a first team regular in1998–99 season and also earned his first senior national cap for Germany. He moved toBayer Leverkusen for €4.1 million in 1999. The2001–02 season saw him win a slew of runners-up medals: Bayer Leverkusenfinished second in the Bundesliga,DFB-Pokal,UEFA Champions League and Germany lost toBrazil in the2002 World Cup Final.
A €12.9 million move toBayern Munich led to further honours: the team won the Bundesliga and DFB-Pokaldouble in 2003, 2005 and 2006. Ballack had become a prolific goalscorer from midfield, scoring 58 goals for Bayern between 2002 and 2006. He joinedPremier League clubChelsea in mid-2006 and won English honours in his first season at the club. Injury ruled him out of much of 2007, but he returned the following season to help Chelsea reach their first everChampions League final. He also went on to win theFA Cup again in 2009 and then once more as part of aleague andcup double in 2010.
Internationally, Ballack has played in theUEFA European Football Championship in2000,2004 and2008, and theFIFA World Cup in2002 and2006.Jürgen Klinsmann appointed him captain of the national team in 2004. Ballack scored consecutive game-winning goals in the quarter-final and semi-final to help his country to the2002 World Cup final and led his team to the semi-finals of the 2006 World Cup and theEuro 2008 final. He is among the top goal scorers in the history of the Germany national team.
Ballack was born on 26 September 1976 inGörlitz,[6] a town inBezirk Dresden,East Germany (nowSaxony, Germany). He is the only child of Stephan Ballack, an engineer, and his wife Karin, a secretary. The family moved toChemnitz (then called Karl-Marx-Stadt) when Ballack was very young and it was there that he started to play football. He first began playing football for sports community.
Ballack's parents sent him to train with sports community BSG Motor "Fritz Heckert" Karl-Marx-Stadt at the age of seven. Ballack was praised by coach Steffen Hänisch. Hänisch was particularly impressed by the well-developed technique for Ballack's age and his ability to shoot with both feet. Ballack was then allowed to attend the elite Children and Youth Sports School (KSJ) "Emil Wallner" in Karl-Marx-Stadt.[7] He then joined the larger and more promoted football club FC Karl-Marx-Stadt (renamedChemnitzer FC in 1990) in 1988. The father of Ballack had played second-division football himself in Germany.
In 1995, Ballack earned his first professional contract, thanks to his performances in the role of central midfielder. He was dubbed the "Little Kaiser", in reference toFranz Beckenbauer, who was nicknamed "Der Kaiser". His professional debut came on 4 August 1995, on the first day of the new2. Bundesliga season. Chemnitz lost the game 2–1, againstVfB Leipzig.[8] At the end of the season, during which Ballack made 15 appearances, Chemnitz were relegated to the multi-tiered, regionalthird division.[5] The following season, Ballack became a regular first-team player as Chemnitz missed out on an immediate return to the Bundesliga. He did not miss a game and scored ten goals for the "Sky Blues". It was not enough for Chemnitz to be promoted, but in the summer of 1997, coachOtto Rehhagel of just-promoted1. FC Kaiserslautern signed Ballack at their return to top flight football.[6]
It was during the seventh match of the1997–98 Bundesliga season, away toKarlsruhe, that Rehhagel decided to give Ballack his first Bundesliga appearance, substituting him onto the field for the final five minutes of the encounter.[9] On 28 March 1998, Ballack made his first-team debut-start againstBayer Leverkusen.[10]
Ballack made 16 appearances for his new team during the season as the club became the first-ever newly promoted team to lift theBundesliga title.[6] In thefollowing season, Ballack became both a regular member of the team (he made 30 appearances, scoring 4 goals in the league) and one of the side's leading players. Kaiserslautern reached the quarter finals of theChampions League, but were eliminated byBayern Munich.[11]
On 1 July 1999, Ballack moved to Bayer Leverkusen at age 22 for a transfer fee of €4.1 million.
It was at Bayer Leverkusen that Ballack made his breakthrough. CoachesChristoph Daum andKlaus Toppmöller granted him an attacking role in the midfield. Ballack was instrumental to the success of Leverkusen, scoring 27 goals in the league[5] and nine in Europe over the course of his three seasons at theBayArena.
In 2000, Bayer Leverkusen needed only a draw against minnowsSpVgg Unterhaching to win the Bundesliga title, but an own goal by Ballack helped send the team to a crushing 0–2 defeat,[12] while Bayern Munich clinched the title with a 3–1 victory overWerder Bremen.[13] The2001–02 season was a disappointing one for Bayer Leverkusen. In the Bundesliga, the team surrendered a five-point lead at the top of the table over the last three games of the season to finish second behindBorussia Dortmund; lost theUEFA Champions Leaguefinal 2–1 toReal Madrid; and lost theDFB-Pokal final 4–2 toSchalke 04. These three runner-up finishes were dubbed a "Treble Horror": Bayer Leverkusen was dubbed "BayerNeverkusen" inEnglish, while theGerman nickname becameVizekusen.[6] Ballack and Leverkusen teammatesBernd Schneider,Carsten Ramelow andOliver Neuville were also beaten finalists with Germany in the2002 FIFA World Cup, although Ballack was suspended for thefinal itself. Ballack finished with 17 league goals and his performance over the season led to him being voted into the UEFA.com users' Team of 2002 as well as being namedGerman Footballer of the Year.
In spite of Real Madrid's interest, Ballack decided to sign with Bayern Munich in a €6 million deal in 2002 after his impressive performances in the World Cup. In his first season with the club, Bayern won theBundesliga with 75 points as well as theDFB-Pokal, with Ballack scoring twice and defeating former club 1. FC Kaiserslautern in the latter's final.[14] In hissecond season, however, Bayern lost both their Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal crowns to Werder Bremen.
In his third season with the Bavarians, Ballack enjoyed success in the2004–05 season as Bayern Munich completed another double. New coachFelix Magath stated he was the only automatic starter in their midfield.[15] In four seasons at Bayern, Ballack won three Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal doubles, scoring 44 goals in 107 Bundesliga matches.[16] Between 1998 and 2005, Ballack scored 61 goals in total in the domestic league.[5]
Ballack's critics, however, noted his frequent "choking" in important Champions League matches. This resulted in open public criticism from club general managerUli Hoeneß, communications directorKarl-Heinz Rummenigge and club presidentFranz Beckenbauer, all former Bayern players. Beckenbauer later went as far as to accuse Ballack of "saving his strength" for prospective employers after Ballack turned in an average performance in the2006 DFB-Pokal final againstEintracht Frankfurt.[17]
Ballack's debut for Chelsea came on 31 July 2006, during a practice match atUCLA's intramural football pitch. Chelsea presented him to the media the following day where the club also gave him his favoured number 13 shirt, worn throughout his career. Upon doing so,William Gallas, who previously wore the number 13 shirt for Chelsea, was given the number 3 shirt. This move created animosity between Gallas and the club as Gallas felt that he was underappreciated.[21] Ballack made his competitive debut in the2006 FA Community Shield, but went off injured in the first half.[22] On 27 August 2006, Ballack made hisPremier League debut for Chelsea againstBlackburn Rovers.[23] On 12 September, he scored his first goal for the club on hisChampions League debut against Werder Bremen.[24]
He received the first straight red card of his career in Chelsea's 1–0 win overLiverpool on 17 September 2006, after being judged to have stamped onMohamed Sissoko's leg.[25] Ballack scored his first Premier League goal on 21 October 2006 againstPortsmouth at Stamford Bridge with a header. His firstFA Cup goal came in the 109th minute in the semi-final against Blackburn on 15 April 2007. This goal resulted in Chelsea progressing into theFA Cup final. He scored eight goals in all competitions for the club in the2006–07 season, including a free-kick againstEverton atGoodison Park, as well as a half-volley againstPorto which sent Chelsea through to the quarter-finals of the Champions League. Throughout his first season at Chelsea, Ballack was criticised for his lethargic performances – for playing as though he had "a huge cigar in his mouth".[26]
On 29 April 2007, Chelsea released a statement on their official website, informing fans that Ballack had undergone ankle surgery inMunich.[27] As a result, Ballack did not play in theFA Cup final against Manchester United, which Chelsea won 1–0 throughDidier Drogba's extra time goal. This was Ballack's second trophy this season, his first being theLeague Cup, the final of which he started.
Despite persistent rumours in the summer 2007 transfer window,[citation needed] Ballack denied that he wanted to leave[citation needed] and no such move materialised. Chelsea left Ballack out of their Champions League squad for the2007–08 group stage as they realised that his injury would prevent him from playing any useful part and preferred to select the fully fitSteve Sidwell. The German international had an ankle operation in the summer and Chelsea could not take the risk of him not regaining full fitness before the end of the group stage. Thus, Ballack could not play in the Champions League before the knockout stages began in February.[28] The club was only able to select 23 out of a possible 25 players for their Champions League squad due to the new UEFA regulations on "association-trained players" and "club-trained players". Due to this regulation, Chelsea were also unable to select young playerScott Sinclair and could only pick 23 players as their only "club-trained player" wasJohn Terry. For this reason, it was deemed unwise to gamble on Ballack being fit at some point.[29]
Ballack made his return to the side in Chelsea's 2–0League Cup win over Liverpool on 19 December 2007. Ballack tallied an assist late in the game to strikerAndriy Shevchenko. On 26 December 2007, Ballack made his Premier League return in a thrilling game againstAston Villa which ended 4–4. He came on forFrank Lampard in the 26th minute after the latter had picked up a thigh injury. In first-half stoppage time, he won a penalty after being brought down in the box byZat Knight, which Andriy Shevchenko converted. In the 88th minute, with the score tied at 3–3, Ballack stepped up to take a free-kick, which he buried into the bottom left corner of the goal, but the match ended in a 4–4 draw.
Ballackcaptained the Chelsea team in the absence of captain John Terry and vice-captain Frank Lampard in a 2–1 win overNewcastle United on 29 December 2007. Ballack then played his 50th game in a Chelsea shirt in a 2–1 win againstFulham in which he scored the winning goal for Chelsea. He also scored the only goal that won the match for Chelsea againstReading to extend the blues' winning streak to a record of nine. And, on 5 March 2007, he scored again, this time againstOlympiacos in the Champions League round of 16 in a 3–0 win. He scored the winning goal in the 2–0 win in the second leg of the quarter-finals againstFenerbahçe, a victory that secured Chelsea a place in the semi-finals.
Ballack continued to score vital goals and, on 26 April 2008, he scored a header and a penalty to give Chelsea a 2–1 win over Manchester United. He was namedMan of The Match for his performance. It brought the two teams level in the race for the Premier League title only two matchdays before the end of theseason.
The season ended on a low note for Ballack as Chelsea finished runners-up in the League Cup, Premier League and Champions League. This completed another treble horror for Ballack and his club. On 29 June 2008,Germany, captained by Ballack, lost toSpain 1–0 in thefinal ofUEFA Euro 2008. This became the second season in Ballack's career after 2002 that he was runner-up for four major trophies.
The2008–09 season started well for Ballack, as he set upJoe Cole to score the first goal in a 4–0 win over Portsmouth in the first game of the season. Ballack was injured shortly after missing the games against Manchester United, Liverpool andArsenal. Ballack's return from injury has been a lift for Chelsea as he set upDeco to score a scissor kick in a 2–0 win againstBolton Wanderers. Ballack's first goal of the '09 season came againstSouthend United in their FA Cup replay, a match which Chelsea went on to win 4–1. Ballack's first Premier League goal of the2008–09 season came on 11 April 2009 in a match against Bolton, ending 4–3 for Chelsea. He came on as a second-half substitute as Chelsea won the2009 FA Cup final. On 2 June 2009, Ballack signed a one-year contract extension with Chelsea.[30]
Ballack on the ground with the ankle injury in the2010 FA Cup Final that eventually ruled him out of theWorld Cup after a tackle fromBoateng (23)
In Chelsea's second game of the season, away atSunderland, Ballack scored his first goal of the2009–10 campaign in their 3–1 win. Ballack also scored againstBurnley in a 3–0 win. Ballack made his firstChampions League appearance for the season against Porto. On 20 September 2009, he scored his third league goal, against Tottenham. On 17 January 2010, he scored his fourth league goal and third assist in a 7–2 win against Sunderland. In Chelsea's fifth roundFA Cup tie againstCardiff City, Ballack scored the goal which putthe Blues back in front; Chelsea ultimately won 4–1.
Ballack was sent off in Chelsea's 4–2 defeat againstManchester City on 27 February 2010.[31] Chelsea went on to win the2009–10 Premier League, Ballack's first league title in England.[32] He also started as Chelsea were victorious against Portsmouth in the2010 FA Cup final, however he would come off injured shortly before half-time after a tackle byKevin-Prince Boateng. As a result of the injury, Ballack was not able to participate in the2010 World Cup.[6][33]
On 9 June 2010, it was announced that Ballack, along with teammates Joe Cole andJuliano Belletti, would leave Chelsea on a free transfer after his contract was not renewed.[34] It was reported that while managerCarlo Ancelotti wanted to retain Ballack, club ownerRoman Abramovich was only willing to offer a one-year deal due to Ballack's age.[33] As of December 2012, Ballack had the lowest loss record of any player with more than 100 appearances in the Premier League, losing just 10 of his 105 appearances.[35]
On 25 June 2010, Ballack signed a two-year contract with former club Bayer Leverkusen.[36] On 19 August 2010, he scored the first goal for Leverkusen in a 3–0 win againstTavriya Simferopol in theUEFA Europa League qualifiers. On 6 October 2010, it was announced that Ballack would not play again in 2010 at the club or international level due to a shin injury sustained 11 September 2010 in aBundesliga match againstHannover 96.
On 20 February 2011, Ballack made his return from injury, coming on as a substitute forSimon Rolfes againstVfB Stuttgart; Leverkusen won the match 4–2. Ballack scored his secondEuropa League goal againstMetalist Kharkiv, a match Leverkusen won 2–0 and the two-legged tie 6–0 on aggregate to progress to the round of 16.[37] Ballack played the full 90 minutes against Schalke 04, assistingEren Derdiyok's goal in an eventual 2–0 victory.[38]
On 26 March 1996, Ballack debuted for theGermany national under-21 team againstDenmark, shortly after signing for Chemnitzer FC. In all, he played 19 matches for this side, scoring four goals. Then, following his move to 1. FC Kaiserslautern,senior team head coachBerti Vogts called him up to the squad.
Ballack's first senior Germany appearance, however, did not come until 28 April 1999, when he came on as a substitute forDietmar Hamann in a match againstScotland.[42]
Ballack only played 63 minutes atUEFA Euro 2000. In the2002 FIFA World Cup, he scored in matches against theUnited States andSouth Korea during the knockout rounds as Germany reached the final. However, he was booked for a tactical foul during the semi-final match against South Korea and was suspended forthe final, which Germany went on to lose 2–0 toBrazil. He was included in theWorld Cup All Star Team. Ballack missing the final ultimately led to a lasting revision of theyellow card amnesty rule in order "to give the best players a chance to play in the final".[43] FollowingEuro 2004,Jürgen Klinsmann replacedRudi Völler at the helm of the national team and Ballack took over fromOliver Kahn as captain. He scored three goals — all penalties — in the2005 Confederations Cup, in which Germany were eliminated byBrazil in the semifinals.[44]
In the2006 World Cup, he was unable to start in Germany's first game againstCosta Rica due to a calf strain, but appeared in the following five matches. Germany were eliminated in the semi-finals, but they managed to clinch third place in a match againstPortugal. He was namedMan of the Match in the games againstEcuador andArgentina,[45] and was included inFIFA'sWorld Cup All Star Team for a second consecutive time. After the tournament, Klinsmann stood down as national team head coach and was succeeded by assistantJoachim Löw.
Ballack started and captained Germany in their first game ofEuro 2008 againstPoland.[46] He proved to be an influential figure in the midfield as Germany came back from a shock defeat toCroatia to make it to thefinal, scoring a free kick againstAustria to secure Germany a 1–0 win and a place in the quarter-finals.[47] In the quarter-finals, he scored a header against Portugal to make the score 3–1 in their 3–2 win after an assist byBastian Schweinsteiger's 60th minute free-kick, helping Germany to advance to the semi-finals. Germany went on to beatTurkey 3–2 in the semifinals. Prior to the final, Ballack sustained a calf injury but eventually overcame it in time. Germany, however, ended up losing 1–0 toSpain. Nevertheless, he was named in the Squad of the Tournament.[48]
Ballack scored four goals in the2010 World Cup qualifiers, but missed the2010 World Cup after suffering an ankle injury from a foul byPortsmouth'sKevin-Prince Boateng in the2009–10 FA Cup final.[49] Ballack did travel to South Africa to provide moral support for the national team but he departed afterPhilipp Lahm, who was appointed team captain due to Ballack's injury, commented after the quarter-finals that he would not relinquish the captaincy back to Ballack. Team managerOliver Bierhoff criticized Lahm's comments and clarified the situation, saying, "Philipp Lahm is the World Cup captain and Michael Ballack is still the captain."[50]
Ballack in 2009
Germany played strongly in the tournament despite Ballack's absence, including a 4–1 win overEngland and a 4–0 win over Argentina en route to finishing third, thanks to emerging midfield talents such asSami Khedira,Thomas Müller, andMesut Özil.[51] Former German captain Lothar Matthäus suggested that Ballack's absence had allowed these young players to blossom.[52]
Since the 2010 World Cup qualifiers, Ballack had not been called up for any international matches. It was reported that Germany coach Joachim Löw was waiting for Ballack to retire from international football after the 2010 World Cup, however Ballack refused to give up despite a rash of injuries suffered in 2010–11 with Bayer Leverkusen.[53] On 16 June 2011, it was announced that Ballack would no longer be a part of the national team. TheGerman Football Association (DFB) offered him twofriendlies to reach 100 matches for Germany, which he refused, accusing Löw of disrespecting him ever since his injury dating back to March 2010 and calling the invitation to compete in another two games for Germany a "farce".[54][55]
Ballack organized a farewell game by himself and invited Löw and Lahm. The teams on the pit were named Worldplayers vs. Ballack and Friends. Lahm played for 90 minutes. In attendance wereBoris Becker,Michael Schumacher,Lothar Matthäus andRudi Völler.[56]
Ballack is considered to be one of the best and most versatile midfielders of his generation;[57] normally deployed in thecentre[58] in abox-to-box role,[59] he played in several midfield positions during his career,[3] including in the roles ofoffensive andholding midfielder,[60] and was noted for his powerful shot with both feet.[3] Due to his tall frame, he was also known for his ability in the air, which made him a goal threat on set pieces.[61] He also excelled at making late runs into the penalty area.[62] On a technical level, he was a commanding, physically strong and aggressive player, with excellent passing range, who moved the ball efficiently,[3] and who was capable of creating chances for his team.[63] An elegant player on the ball,[62] the technicality and intelligence of his game was extremely high.[64][65][66] He started his football career as asweeper,[64] but when he moved to Leverkusen in 1999, then-coach Christoph Daum moved him to midfield.[67] He adapted to playing in a deeper role on occasion during his spell at Chelsea.[60][68] Ballack was also a strong tackler, which combined with his stamina, as well as his aerial,playmaking, and goalscoring abilities, made him a "complete midfielder," as he was once described by Ben Welch ofFourFourTwo magazine in 2013.[59][69][70] Beyond his playing ability, Ballack also stood out for his leadership qualities throughout his career.[71] In 2011, Ballack's international coach at the time, Joachim Löw, praised him, describing him as a player who "exudes authority and calm on the pitch".[72] Despite his ability as a player, his later career was often limited by recurring injury struggles.[70]
Ballack's surname is ofSorbian origin.[73] He was the only child of father Stephan, an engineer who played third-division football, and mother Karin, a secretary and swimmer.[74]
On 14 July 2008, Ballack married his long-time girlfriend Simone Lambe.[75] The couple had three children together: Louis (born 2001), Emilio (2002–2021), and Jordi (born 2005).[76] The couple divorced in 2012. He dated Natacha Tannous from 2015 to 2019.[77]
^Die Welt (2006)."Ballack, das Plappermaul". Die Welt.Ballack deutet nämlich Jürgen Udolph, der Leipziger Professor für Namenkunde, als eine sorbische Sproßform von Balthasar. Gegen diese Lesart kommt aber entschiedener Widerstand aus dem Institut für Slawistik an der Hamburger Universität. Ballack, heißt es da, kommt vom slawischen "bala" für erzählen, sprechen – in abwertender Form also: quasseln, plappern -, und "-ak" ist ein Suffix (Nachsilbe) und bedeutet, daß einer das tut. Ein "agens", wie die Namenforscher sagen. Ballack (richtig geschrieben: Balak) wäre also auf gut deutsch: das Plappermaul. Der Ball heißt auf polnisch: pilka.
^"Alle Männer des Jahres" [All Men of the Year].kicker (in German). 26 December 2011.Archived from the original on 16 February 2010. Retrieved19 October 2012.
^"Elf des Jahrhunderts" [Team of the Century].Kölnische Rundschau (in German). 21 May 2004. Archived fromthe original on 16 February 2010. Retrieved13 May 2013.
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