Germany midfielder Michael Ballack has declared himself fit to play in the host's opening match with Costa Rica in Munich on Friday. Ballack was forced to pull out of Wednesday's training with his calf injury still troubling him and Klinsmann said his star midfielder would not be available in Munich. But Ballack told German newspaper Bild: "I am fit, I want to play, I am ready and without problems. "Whether I will be playing or not is up to the national team coach." Ballack was cleared to join in the Wednesday training session, his first since picking up the injury.

Klinsmann said,"He only trained for 30 minutes on Wednesday and then had to pull out. We wanted Ballack on board as he is our captain and leader but it is important that he recovers. We want him to get back to full fitness so that he can be fit for the other games in the competition."
Werder Bremen midfielder Tim Borowski and Borussia Dortmund's Sebastian Kehl are expected to battle it out to replace Ballack should he not feature.