It’s not often England fans have cause to feel sympathy for the captain of the German football team, but the injury Michael Ballack sustained in the FA Cup final is as good a reason as they’ll ever get.
Yes, he isn’t exactly everyone’s cup of tea – he’s the kind of hard tackling midfielder opposing fans hate. Still, it would be a cold hearted supporter indeed who didn’t feel sorry for Ballack as he limped off the Wembley pitch after an awful challenge by Portsmouth’s Kevin Prince Boateng.
Just under 48 hours later scans confirmed what Ballack must have feared – ankle ligament damage that will keep him out of action for eight weeks, meaning his World Cup dream is now dead.
Given the nature of the tackle some will say, things could have been much worse and it would be hard to argue otherwise – he could have easily ended up with a broken ankle. However, this will be scant conciliation for Ballack who, at the age of 33, is highly unlikely to get another chance to play in a World Cup.
Despite this, the Chelsea man remained stoic, admitting that although the injury was a “bitter blow” and “there’s a lot of disappointment” he can accept “life goes on”.
Coach Joachim Loew is certainly trying to move on, as he must. He praised Ballack but at the same time pointed out that the squad has to “look forward” and ensure it pulls together as they head into the World Cup.
However, the Chelsea man will be a big miss for the Germans and their World Cup odds lengthened after he was ruled out.
In a further twist to the tail, Germany will face Ghana in the group stages and Boateng could start for the African nation. If that wasn’t spicy enough, his brother Jerome is in the German squad so all in all the match could be very interesting indeed.
Currently, the betting site odds make Loew’s men around 12/1 shots for this year’s tournament, but there are doubts over the abilities of their young side.
Germany start their World Cup against Australia on June 13. They then play Serbia on June 18th before taking on Ghana in their final group game on June 23rd.
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i am so sorry abouth mr. ballack . who will mr. loew choosed to replace him?