Ballack eyes amazing double
28 Apr 2008 - 09:15:43
Germany international Michael Ballack believes Chelsea are now the team in form and are favourites to beat Liverpool on Wednesday and reach the Champions League Final.
Ballack's brace helped the Blues beat Manchester United 2-1 in the Premier League on Saturday, four days after Avram Grant's side had held Liverpool to a 1-1 draw in the Champions League semi-final first leg clash at Anfield.
Ballack now thinks the Blues could complete a famous double, saying: "We've put ourselves in this situation and it's exactly where we wanted to be.
"It's going to be close to the end but, when I look around at the others, I like this situation. We look better than I think all the other teams in the Champions League now, so we will see what we can do.
"This helps for Wednesday, of course it does. We look fresh and we're showing we can play as well. Saturday was our best performance of the season, especially in the first half.
"We played very well and passed the ball well - it wasn't as if it was just long balls to Didier [Drogba]. We demonstrated that we can move the ball very quickly when we want to as well.
"That is a big strength. We have good players, but we have to show it more now. Of course, United still have everything in their hands in the league, so it's down to them to lose it.
"But now they are the team under pressure. A few weeks ago it looked as though they were champions, but now it's so much tighter."