Ballack battling to rediscover winning feeling

MICHAEL BALLACK is determined to put his summer misery behind him and focus on winning silverware for Chelsea.

The 31-year-old midfielder lost in the Champions League final with his club last May then finished second in Euro 2008 with Germany, adding another chapter to his near-misses after losing three finals in a week when playing for Bayer Leverkusen, who were dubbed ‘Neverkusen’.

Ballack is recovering from an ankle injury and could feature at Portsmouth tonight in the third round of the Carling Cup as Chelsea go in search of glory on all four fronts this season.

“I didn’t just think about Moscow in the summer, I lost another final as well,” said Ballack.

“You always think about football, I think about it all the time. If you lose two finals in four weeks, of course you’re going to think back.

“It’s also good that you have a new season, new targets and a big motivation this season. We have a big squad and lots of competition so that is good in football.”

The clash at Fratton Park will be a test of Luiz Felipe Scolari’s promise to challenge for all four trophies, especially after a draining encounter against Manchester United at the weekend.

“The challenge for Chelsea is to win all the competitions in which we participate. Manchester United is one more game,” said the Brazilian.

The Chelsea boss could rest his big players but also has injury problems – Deco and Ricardo Carvalho were injured before and during the United clash, respectively.

Deco will be out for at least a fortnight with a thigh strain, while Carvalho is on the sidelines for up to a month, joining Michael Essien on the treatment table.

Striker Didier Drogba is also struggling for match fitness after his knee injury, meaning Scolari could be short on numbers if he wants to rotate.

His squad list currently comprises 25 players after letting the likes of Shaun Wright-Phillips, Tal Ben-Haim, Steve Sidwell, Claude Makelele, Andriy Shevchenko and Claudio Pizarro leave in the summer.

Meanwhile, Wigan manager Steve Bruce is looking forward to a family occasion in the Carling Cup third round at Ipswich tonight, with his son Alex playing for the Coca-Cola Championship side.

Bruce Senior insists there will be sentiment involved, saying: “It is about time I turned him over.

“It’s a game we definitely want to win. The club got to the final a few seasons ago and it would be great to have a run like that again.”

He added: “We’ll put out a strong squad, that’s for sure.

“To be honest we’ve got no others but what you’ve seen so far this season and it could be a chance for me to put in two or three who haven’t featured that much and need a game.”

Bruce hinted that Michael Brown could figure after being rested for Sunday’s 0-0 draw at Tottenham in the Barclays Premier League.