Ballack warns Chelsea superstars not to cross boss

Already some of his squad have fired what could be seen as warning shots across Grant's bows. England midfielder Frank Lampard, left out against Olympiakos in midweek, said he does not fancy the idea of being a bitpart player, and the same is likely to apply to Joe and Ashley Cole, Florent Malouda, John Obi Mikel, Nicolas Anelka, John Terry and anyone else left sweating on the manager's verdict.

But Ballack feels his highly paid team-mates should accept Grant's decision and not seek any one-to-one meetings with their manager.

"He is a very serious coach," says Ballack. "He doesn't have to explain to players why they are not in the team. Every player has to accept the situation and deal with it, even if they don't play."

Of course, Ballack is talking with the luxury of someone who does not believe for one second he will be among those who misses the big day. Some would call it the confidence of a champion, others might see it as arrogance. Either way, nobody could accuse the 31-year-old German of hiding his light under a bushel.

While other superstars anxiously wait to see what their roles will be, Ballack seems genuinely perplexed when asked if he will be nervous about making the team line-up.

"Nervous? No, no. I always have confidence and expect to play," he says without any hesitation. The records suggest Ballack is right. When fit, he plays.

Even when he struggled under Jose Mourinho in his first season, he was an untouchable. He arrived in England in 2006 as the Premier League's highestpaid player on £140,000-a-week and a reputation — forged with Bayer Leverkusen, Bayern Munich and Germany — to match.

Given the pedigree, most pundits ruled his first season a flop. Ballack scored only eight goals, while Lampard rattled in 22.

Since returning from an ankle injury in December, he has played well in the absence of Lampard, fuelling the theory that they are too similar to work well together.

"I came on a free transfer, so I was very cheap for Chelsea," Ballack says with a smile to wave off talk of his handsome pay packet. "It has been an exciting two seasons."