The 23-year-old Ghana star committed the late tackle on Ballack when playing for Portsmouth in the FA Cup final 11 days ago. He has repeatedly apologised but told Sport Bild magazine that he and his family have become the target of a hate campaign. "What is happening has gone too far," he said. "Some people have managed to involve my family in this whole affair and we have been turned into an evil enemy. "On the other hand, many are minimising and ignoring the slap around the face I got from Michael Ballack. "Even my public apology a week last Monday has been swept under the table. People have overstepped the mark." Boateng said in last week's Sport Bild magazine that he had apologised three times to Ballack during and after the FA Cup final. He now claims that several of Ballack's Chelsea team-mates have been in touch with him to lend their support. "I have had contact with two or three Chelsea players and they say that a foul like that can happen," he revealed. "They say I should not let what is being reported about me get to me. It was not intentional. "I don't want to be seen as a victim, but I would like criticism to be constructive." Boateng is set to make his debut for Ghana in a friendly match against as-yet-unconfirmed opponents in Paris on Thursday. The Black Stars then face Holland in Rotterdam on June 1 and Latvia in Milton Keynes on June 5 before jetting out to South Africa. Boateng will come up against Germany on June 23 in a group fixture.
