Chelsea midfielder Michael Ballack has claimed that he absolutely loves playing amongst the world class superstars in the Blues squad.

The German international is also looking forward clinching the UEFA Champions League trophy in the Final against Manchester United so that he can add it to his already impressive collection of medals.

"Playing for Chelsea I have to be more ruthless than in the German national team where I've managed to earn myself a different status over the years," Ballack said.

"But it also means that I'm expected to make decisions on the pitch - it's different at Chelsea.

"We have six captains from national teams on our side - John Terry for England, Didier Drogba for the Ivory Coast, Andrei Shevchenko for the Ukraine, Petr Cech for the Czech Republic, Claudio Pizarro for Peru and me for Germany, as well as quite a few top international players.

"But I wanted to play with all these stars - come hell or high water. Just to be able to prove that I could meet the challenge was well worth the battle for me.

"And now I can say, whatever happens, I've accomplished something. At the same time, I was never worried that I wouldn't succeed."