The 26-year-old Senegal international, who will wear the number 19 shirt at St James' Park rather than the famous number nine, will follow in the footsteps of the likes of Jackie Milburn, Malcolm Macdonald and Alan Shearer as he embarks upon the latest phase of his career on Tyneside. But asked if that will represent a weight on his shoulders, Ba told Sky Sports News: "No, no, not at all. I have seen the history of the strikers here and it is just fantastic. "I come here and just want to do my bit, and hopefully it is going to be good and it is going to be enough. "I just expect to help the team grow and help the team win as many games as possible." Former Hoffenheim frontman Ba signed a three-year deal on Friday evening after convincing the club's medics that the knee problem which scuppered his proposed move to Stoke in January is not an issue, although it is understood that there is an appearance-related element to his contract. He scored seven goals in 13 appearances - 12 of them in the Premier League - for the Hammers during the second half of last season, but admitted that only hard graft will enable him to maintain that level of performance. He said: "With strikers, it's always like that - one season you are good, one season you are bad. "The only way to keep that level, that average of goals, is to work hard, so I am going to work hard to keep that average I had at West Ham." However, manager Alan Pardew is convinced Ba can help to plug the gap left by Andy Carroll's £35million January move to Liverpool. He said: "Demba made a great impression with West Ham last season and is a great signing for this club. "He has pace, excellent technical ability, is good in the air and, it goes without saying, has the ability to consistently find the back of the net. "Moreover he has a great passion to play for Newcastle United." Ba is Newcastle's second summer signing after Lille midfielder Yohan Cabaye and fits both the profile the club has drawn up for its transfer targets. The Magpies fought off competition from several other interested parties to secure the striker a day after Kevin Nolan's exit for Upton Park. Ba was born in the Paris suburb of Sevres and is one of eight children.
