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Former Chelsea star Michael Ballack is reportedly dating a 21-year-old friend of his late son Emilio, who passed away in a road accident last year.
Ballack, 45, was left heartbroken in August last year when his son died in a tragic quad bike accident in Lisbon. According to reports, the teenager was killed when his quad bike rolled backwards and fell on top of him at the family's Portuguese holiday home.
Emilio was one of the three children the former German midfielder had with then-girlfriend Simone Lambe. The couple married each other in 2008 but divorced four years later in 2012.
According to Bild [via Daily Mail], Ballack was spotted visiting Art Basel, a fair for modern and contemporary art, with his model girlfriend Sophia Schneiderhan.
The 21-year-old Schneiderhan works for Louisa Models and has over 54,000 followers on Instagram. As per the report, the couple are not bothered by the 24-year age gap.
Ballack, who joined the Blues from Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich in 2006, stamped his authority in England during his four-year stint at the London club. He featured in 167 matches across all competitions, scoring 25 goals and providing 25 assists.
During his time at Stamford Bridge, Ballack won one Premier League title, three FA Cup crowns and one League Cup trophy.
Chelsea aim for a defensive rebuild in the transfer market
Ahead of the 2022/23 season, Chelsea are aiming to add defenders to their squad to fill the void left by the exits of Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen. Cesar Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso are also rumoured to depart the Premier League club.
Speaking to football.london last month, Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel said:
"We are rebuilding, not improving the squad. We are rebuilding. This is always challenging, but we are up for the challenge."
He continued:
"I don't know where we are from day one. What I can promise is that I will be here – if I can promise that – I will be here with full energy and positive energy no matter what. We will still work for Chelsea, and I refuse to think of negative scenarios. We will be competitive, on which level we will see."
According to a report by The Sun, the London club are pondering a move for Wolverhampton Wanderers defender Rayan Ait-Nouri. Chelsea are also keeping tabs on Juventus centre-back Matthijs de Ligt, as per a report by Metro, and Sevilla defender Jules Kounde.
