• Senegalese says competition for places brings out his best
• Ba says: 'We will all work in the same direction'
Demba Ba is determined to remain at Chelsea for the season ahead despite the Londoners' ongoing attempts to add Wayne Rooney to their forward options, with the Senegalese confident the competition for places will bring out the best in his form.
The Senegal forward, a £7m signing from Newcastle back in January, scored six goals in all competitions for Rafael Benítez's side over the second half of last season as he eased the workload for Fernando Torres, previously the only recognised available forward at the club.
Romelu Lukaku's return from a successful loan spell at West Bromwich Albion has added to José Mourinho's options since, with the possibility remaining that Rooney could become the fourth senior striker on the books should Manchester United accept any future Chelsea offer.
That would potentially leave Ba further down the pecking order but the forward, who scored after starting the 8-1 thrashing of an Indonesian All Stars XI on Thursday, believes he will still make his mark. "I think we need competition and we welcome the best players in this club," said Ba when asked about Rooney's possible arrival.
"More competition is going to make me better anyway. All players want to play, not only centre-forwards. We will all work in the same direction, for the club, to try and win the games. I will stay."
Mourinho has started with Lukaku in each of the previous friendlies in the club's tour of the Far East, the Belgian registering in both games and adding a second-half brace in Jakarta after replacing Ba at half-time. The 28-year-old Senegalese is content, however, with his own progress towards full fitness ahead of the side's departure on Tuesday for a four-game tour of the United States.
"I feel good," he added. "It's always good to score but, at this stage, it's more about the work and running a lot on the pitch to get you condition back. It's been a good week's work with the new manager. We will see in the next few weeks. It will be exciting."
via Football: Chelsea | theguardian.com http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/jul/26/chelsea-demba-ba-rooney
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