London houses too expensive says Chelsea's £130,000 a week man

He is the one of the richest players in Chelsea's squad of millionaires — but Michael Ballack, who earns £130,000 a week, still finds London too expensive.

The 29-year-old captain of the German national squad has been taken aback by the scale of the capital's house prices. "London is extremely expensive. It is better to rent," he said, adding: "My family and I have found a house in Wimbledon."

He likes his new home. "It is central enough for me, you can get to the centre pretty quickly and also to the training ground."

But he has become aware of the number of speed cameras on British roads and the risk of being flashed in his Audi Q7. "Luckily I have found out where they all are near me," he said.

Ballack, who scored from the penalty spot in Chelsea's Champions League win over Werder Bremen last night, also provided a glimpse of his domestic life.

His sons — Luis, five, and Emilio, six — are packed off to an Englishspeaking school each day in their new uniforms. "It's a big change for them but they will profit from it in the long run," he said.

His youngest Jordi, 18 months, is already learning to speak English fluently with him and his long-time partner Simone.

But Ballack, born and raised in communist East Germany, admits his Russian is better — which should make conversations with club boss Roman Abramovich easier.

The only son of a civil engineer and a market researcher, he grew up in Karl-Marx-Stadt, where his home was a tiny flat on an estate.

He has pledged never to forget his roots and visits the town twice a year. But of his new home, he has revealed a taste for that most English of dishes — fish and chips with peas — though he is delighted he can still find German delicacies in English supermarkets.

As well as improving his English, the midfielder told Germany's Bild Zeitung, that his ambition was to win the Champions League for his new Premiership club, which he joined in the summer on a lucrative deal after his contract expired at Bayern Munich.

His performances at this year's World Cup in Germany and 2002's competition in Japan and South Korea, when he helped Germany reach a final for which he was suspended, has helped turn him into one of the game's most sought-after players.

But he has not always seen eyeto- eye with managers and club officials and his relationship with the sometimes volatile Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho will be fascinating.

Bayern fans, disappointed by his decision to leave, jeered Ballack in his last game. But he said: "The time has come for me to make this move."