Michael Ballack has given Chelsea a perfectly-timed boost after he was declared available for the Carling Cup quarter-final against Liverpool on Wednesday. The German international has not played a single game since picking up an ankle injury in a Premiership match in April. He has returned in a perfect time for Chelsea coach Avram Grant, who will miss Didier Drogba and John Terry due to injuries. Ghanaian midfielder Michael Essien will also miss the game through suspension. "It is not an easy to come back after such a long injury but Michael is a good character and a good player and that is what is important," Grant was quoted as saying by Chelsea website. "We have a very good squad but we have missed him. We want him to be available." Former Bayern Munich man Ballack said he feared his career might be over after sustaining the injury. "I had thousands of questions, but I was never given any answers," the midfielder told Die Zeit. "I'm sure I got on everyone's nerves, but my injury was in my thoughts 24 hours a day. "Sometimes I thought: You are 31 and have had 14 good years as a professional, maybe it's time to call it a day."
