The Chelsea midfielder Michael Ballack has confirmed that talks will soon take place over his future with the west London club, but he has not ruled out moving to another Premier League side.
The Germany captain's contract expires at the end of next month and he has yet to find out whether Chelsea are prepared to offer him an extension, but he told Germany's WDR radio that his future will soon be resolved.
"After the season, we are definitely going to hold talks with the [Chelsea] decision makers and then we will see where things go from there," he said. "My primary aim is to stay in the Premier League."
The 33-year-old has been linked with a move back to the Bundesliga with Schalke emerging as a surprise candidate to sign him. But Ballack said he would "prefer not to comment" on such rumours which "are always around when no decision has been made" about the future of a player who is set to become a free agent.
Instead, he is concentrating on helping Germany to World Cup glory in South Africa after a provisional squad of 27 was announced by the national team coach Joachim Löw today.
"We, like many other nations, want to win the World Cup," Ballack said. "We have qualified with good performances and we will be self-confident. We may have had a few dips in form in recent months, but we will prepare ourselves well."