Ba has blessing to talk to Chelsea
Reuters - Wednesday 02 January 2013, 14:28
European champions Chelsea have been given the blessing of Newcastle
United manager Alan Pardew to sign Senegal striker Demba Ba after his
release clause was triggered on Wednesday.
Chelsea
are desperate for backup in attack for inconsistent Spain international
Fernando Torres, who is the London team's most used outfield player
this season.
"It's done, he
will go to Chelsea with our blessing. He has done fantastically for us,
it's a big club, good luck to him," Pardew told Sky Sports News ahead of
Newcastle's clash with Everton on Wednesday.
"For
us, it's not a bad thing because of all the uncertainty of whether he
was going to stay is now done. We can move on, we're a massive club
here. This club is bigger than any player for sure. In some respects,
I'm pleased."
Newcastle
earlier confirmed Chelsea's interest in Ba which "triggered the release
clause in the player's contract," read a statement on their website.
Newcastle,
labouring in the bottom half of the table after finishing fifth last
term, did not give details of the release clause but media reports
suggest it is around seven million pounds.
Chelsea
made no official statement with Ba expected to undergo a medical and
agree personal terms. The 27-year-old failed a medical at Stoke City in
2011.
Ba has been a mainstay in attack for the north-east club since joining from West Ham United on a free transfer in June 2011.
"We
prepared yesterday with Demba in the side. I was assuming that. I was
in the dark as I have been on most of this particular deal because
obviously the ball was in Demba's court," added Pardew.
TOP SCORER
The
striker, who previously had spells with Rouen, Mouscron and Hoffenheim,
needed eight games to score his first Newcastle goal but he ended his
drought in style with a hat-trick in a 3-1 victory over Blackburn
Rovers.
Ba finished the 2011/12 campaign as the club's top league scorer with 16 goals including another hat-trick against Stoke.
He
has continued his free-scoring ways this season, bagging 13 league
goals to lie joint second in the overall chart behind Manchester
United's Robin van Persie (16).
Options
up front for Chelsea have been limited following the exits of Didier
Drogba and Salomon Kalou in the close season and the decision to allow
Romelu Lukaku to join Premier League rivals West Bromwich Albion on
loan.
Ba will replace England
forward Daniel Sturridge, who joined Liverpool on Wednesday following
an injury-interrupted season with the Stamford Bridge club.
The
move may also dampen speculation that Chelsea are trying to sign
Atletico Madrid's Colombia striker Radamel Falcao, who has scored 17
goals so far in La Liga to take his side to second behind free-scoring
Barcelona.
Newcastle seem
poised to use some of the Ba money to recruit Lille and France defender
Mathieu Debuchy, who was spotted in the stands watching the side on
Wednesday.