Good news for Team Germany: King Micha returns.

After nearly a year, the German National Team will welcome back their King. Michael Ballack will return to play next week in a friendly against Austria.

“We are very pleased that Michael is absolutely fit and that he’s coming back to the national team after such a long time,” coach Joachim Loew said Thursday in announcing the 20-man squad. “He has shown strong performances after his comeback in Chelsea and we hope he can build on that. He has a very important role in our plans for the European Championship.”

Although Wednesday’s match is just a friendly, it will be a good gauge for the team as they are grouped with Austria in the Euro 2008 games. Other news is that Lukas Podolski, who is nursing a back injury, should be back in time for this match. Loew will be without Torsten Frings, Christoph Metzelder, Arne Friedrich, Marcell Jansen, Clemens Fritz, Christian Pander and Serdar Tasci due to various injuries.