Chelsea complete Ba signing

Chelsea have completed the signing of striker Demba Ba from Newcastle United.



Ba has put pen to paper on a three-and-a-half year deal at Stamford Bridge, after the Blues triggered the £7 million release clause in his Magpies contract.



The deal was completed just in time for the Senegal international to be available to manager Rafa Benitez for the FA Cup tie against Southampton this weekend.



"It feels good to be here, I'm very happy and very proud," Ba said. "When the club who won the Champions League wants you, the decision is very easy.



"This club is massive and that's something that helped the decision a lot. It was not a hard one."



Ba is also available for the club's Capital One Cup semi-final against Swansea, but cannot play in the Europa League due to Newcastle's own participation in the competition.



He will wear the No. 29 shirt for Chelsea.



"It was important for me, and for Newcastle, to get my future sorted and now we can move on," Ba added. "Now they have the whole month to buy someone and for me as well, the sooner the better.



"Now I am here I just need to get settled in."



Ba was Newcastle's top scorer for the first half of the season, scoring 13 Premier League goals - including a hat-trick in what turned out to be his final game for the club, the 7-3 defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.



He previously gained Premier League experience with West Ham.

Wednesday's round up of the top transfer stories

- Demba Ba has sealed his move to Chelsea — with Alan Pardew insisting the striker leaves with Newcastle’s “blessing”.



- Liverpool have confirmed the signing of striker Daniel Sturridge from Chelsea.



- Liverpool have been offered the chance to sign former Chelsea winger Ricardo Quaresma, according to reports in Spain.



- Blackpool manager Michael Appleton insists Liverpool have yet to return with an improved offer for winger Thomas Ince.



- Arsene Wenger is confident Theo Walcott will finally commit himself to a new contract.



- Arsenal defender Johan Djourou is a target for German club Hannover.



- Manchester United and Tottenham are set to go head-to-head in the battle to sign Crystal Palace wonderkid Wilfried Zaha.



- Chelsea have suffered a transfer blow after Corinthians indicated their desire to keep hold of Paulinho.



- Chelsea midfielder Marko Marin wants to fight for his future at Stamford Bridge and has ruled out the possibility of a return to the Bundesliga this month.



- Tottenham have become the latest Premier League side to submit an offer for Spain striker David Villa, according to El Confidencial.



- Newcastle are set to bid for West Ham defender James Tomkins as they look to rebuild their depleted squad in the January transfer window.



- Alan Pardew is convinced new recruit Mathieu Debuchy will add class to Newcastle’s defence.



- Ghanian international Derek Boateng is to undergo a medical on Wednesday ahead of a January move to Fulham.



- Sunderland boss Martin O'Neill is on red alert after Paris Saint Germain told France international Guillaume Hoarau he can leave in January.



- Reading have joined Newcastle United and Inter Milan in the chase to sign Douglas, the FC Twente defender.



- Reading are close to signing Australia international Tom Rogic to help bolster the options in central midfield.



- West Bromwich boss Steve Clarke has told £4m-rated midfielder Graham Dorrans he can quit the Hawthorns in the transfer window.



- Stoke City and Fulham are locked in a three-way battle with Serie A side Udinese to sign Saint-Etienne left-back Faouzi Ghoulam.



- Wigan will complete the loan signing of Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Joel in the coming days.



- West Ham are poised to make their first signing in the January transfer window with teenage sensation Rinor Nushi set to arrive at the club.



- Liverpool midfielder Joe Cole is undergoing a medical at West Ham United, according to SkySports.



- Angelo Henriquez is determined to use his time at Wigan to prove himself in the Premier League after joining the Latics on loan until the end of the season.



- Blackburn Rovers have completed the signing of Norwegian international Joshua King from Manchester United for a fee of £1million.



- Hull City are set to complete the permanent signing of Republic of Ireland international David Meyler in a £1.5million deal from Sunderland.



- Cristiano Ronaldo has refused to confirm his future lies with Real Madrid but insists for now he is happy with the club.



- Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone has ruled out selling winger Arda Turan in the January transfer window, after the Turk was linked with Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal.



- Celta Vigo have signed Eintracht Frankfurt defender Vadim Demidov on loan until the end of the season.



- Inter Milan are ready to battle with Serie A rivals Lazio for the signature of Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard.



- One of Europe's leading football agents believes Manchester City and Chelsea target Edinson Cavani will leave Napoli in the summer - and has already chosen his favoured destination.



- Napoli are set to open the bidding for Southampton target Davide Astori.



- Defender Salvatore Aronica has pledged to do all he can to keep Palermo in Serie A after swapping a bid for the Scudetto for a scrap against relegation.



- Mauro Zarate's agent has declared 'war' on Lazio president Claudio Lotito after the club slapped a hefty price-tag on him.



- Borussia Dortmund would be glad to offer Nuri Sahin a return to the club if he became available at the right price, according to the Bundesliga club's director of sport Michael Zorc.



- Schalke contract rebel Lewis Holtby is keen on a move to Tottenham - if Andre Villas-Boas pushes through his interest this month.



- Fernandinho has played down speculation linking him with a move to English football by insisting he is committed to Shakhtar Donetsk.



- Alessandro Del Piero has rubbished suggestions that he could make a shock exit from A-League side Sydney FC, following a string of poor results.



- FC Dynamo Kyiv have signed defender Domagoj Vida from GNK Dinamo Zagreb.



- Sheffield Wednesday have tied midfielder Liam Palmer down to a new two-and-a-half-year deal, before loaning him straight back to Tranmere.



- Fleetwood Town have completed the signings of midfielders Gareth Evans and Mozesh Gyorio.



- Rotherham have completed the permanent signing of Peterborough midfielder Lee Frecklington.

Top 10 best buys

Premier League's best bargains, in pictures :-

Nicolas Anelka: £500,000

A great investment by Arsene Wenger who signed Anelka frm Paris St Germain in 1997. During his two seasons he helped the club to a league and cup double before joining Real Madrid for just under £23 million.



Demba Ba: free

A risk by Newcastle manager Alan Pardew given the state of the striker's knees but it's paid off enormously. He scored 16 goals in his first season on Tyneside.



Tim Cahill: £1.5m

Twice a bargain transfer. The first time when Everton signed him from Milwall for £1.5 million in 2004 and if the latest rumours prove true, the Australian is set to join the New York Red Bulls for just over a million.



Sol Campbell: free

He angered Tottenham fans when he joined Arsenal for nothing but it was another genius bit of negotiating from Wenger as Campbell was central to the club's success between 2001-06.



Eric Cantona: £1.2m

Probably Sir Alex Ferguson's best deal to date; The King cost the Scot just £1.2m when he signed from Leeds in 1992. He was well worth it and scored 64 goals in 143 appearances.



Ole Gunner Solskjaer: £1.5m

United's Baby Faced Assasin cost them just £1.5 million, a great investment for 10 years of outstanding service and crucial goals.



Robin van Persie: £2.75

A cut price for the striker who arrived from Feyenoord in 2004 and went on to score 96 goals in 194 appearances. Arsenal are set to cash in on the Dutchman who has recently annunced he intends to leave.



Joe Hart: £600,000

Manchester City and England's No 1 goalkeeper who cost next to nothing in 2006. he is now one of the club's top earners.



Shay Given: £1.5

Another bargain goalkeeper, Newcastle paid under two million for Shay Given in 1997 and were rewarded with 10 years of outstanding service.



Cesc Fabregas: free

Another great piece of negotiating from Wenger who is renowned for his unwillingness to spend big. A young Fabregas joined in 2003 as he feared getting not play time at Barcelona. Again Arsenal cashed in on their man and sold him back to the Catalan club last year for £30m.

Ba committed to Newcastle

Newcastle United striker Demba Ba has insisted he is keen to remain at Tyneside with just four days to go before the release-clause in his contract expires.

Speculation has been rife that the 27-year-old Senegal international could be used to help broker a deal to bring Liverpool's Andy Carroll back to the north-east.



But Ba insisted he wants to play for the Premier League side next season. "I don't care what is being said. I think it's part of the game," Ba told the Journal from Newcastle's training base in Portugal. "However, I have never said anything other than I love being at Newcastle. If they hear something from me about my future, that is the truth. Otherwise, everything that is said is not true.



"The newspapers and I are not very friendly at the moment. For months and months and months, people have been talking about me, but there is nothing happening. Of course, I am looking forward to next season with Newcastle. We just have to build on the progress we made last season. For me, I just can't wait to start the first game."



Ba arrived at St James' Park on a free transfer from West Ham United last summer and scored 15 goals before heading on African Nations Cup duty. He got just one more on his return after being asked to assume a different role following the January signing of compatriot Papiss Cisse, who scored 13 goals to help the Magpies' surge into the top five.

Ba slams exit talk 'rubbish'

Demba Ba has reiterated his committment to Newcastle United after a summer of speculation over his future.



Ba came off the bench in last night’s 1-0 friendly defeat to German club Chemnitzer.



The striker has a well-publicised £7million buy-out clause in his contract.



And the 26-year-old was heavily linked with a move to Galatasaray last month.



However, Ba moved to end talk of a move away from St James’s Park after the game, decided by a first-half goal from Anton Fink.



“The fans see me on the pitch - that’s my message to them,” Ba said. “In the papers there’s been a lot of rubbish!



“Like I said I said on Twitter, it’s just rumours.



“People talk, but what I can say is that none of the teams that have been talked about have approached me. I’m still a Newcastle player, and I enjoy putting on a black and white shirt.”



Ba emerged from the tunnel last night with a broad grin on his face, and he has also told his team-mates he is happy at the club.



“Life is brilliant - I always have a smile on my face,” Ba went on.



“That’s how I am. Football is my job, but it’s also a lot of fun for me. If it wasn’t, I wouldn’t do it.”



Pardew’s side are back in action on Monday night when they face Monaco in Landsberg.

Magpies rubbish Ba reports

Sky Sports understands that reports claiming Demba Ba has left Newcastle and signed for Galatasaray are wide of the mark.



Italian media reported on Thursday that the Senegal international was on his way out of St James' Park.



Speculation suggested that a deal had been agreed with Turkish outfit Galatasaray.



It is common knowledge that Ba has a clause in his contract that can be activated up until 31st July.



Interested parties can trigger that clause by matching a pre-determined transfer fee.



Ba has offered little indication as to where he sees his future, leaving Newcastle sweating on his continued involvement on Tyneside.



The Magpies have, however, dismissed rumours that have suggested a deal has been done with Galatasaray and insist that the striker, who netted 16 times during his debut season for the club in 2011/12, is not for sale.