His arrival will ease the pressure on record signing Fernando Torres, who Benítez admitted needed a rest after the surprise home defeat to Queens Park Rangers on Wednesday night.
Torres has already played 32 games for the club this season and seven goals in his last nine outings suggest the appointment of Benítez has provoked a reaction from the Spain international. But Benítez is keen to take Torres out of the firing line and may even leave him out of the squad that travel to St??Mary's.
Ba's goalscoring record is equally admirable, however, with the 27 year-old scoring 13 of Newcastle's 27 goals in the Premier League this season and 29 goals in only 54 appearances since signing on a free transfer from West Ham in the summer of 2011.
Frank Lampard will definitely quit Stamford Bridge at the end of the season, his agent said on Thursday night.
The 34 year-old is wanted by other Premier League clubs as well as leading European sides including Inter Milan. Major League Soccer could also be an option for the midfielder and his representative Steve Kutner said: "We don't rule out anything.
"The only certain thing is that he'll change team at the end of the season. Frank wants to play in a great team, able to fight for important trophies."
Yossi Benayoun has returned to Chelsea after a disastrous loan spell at West Ham, making only six appearances for Sam Allardyce.
Benayoun's time across London was affected by niggling injuries and he will meet Benitez in the next few days to discuss his future. He worked under the new Chelsea interim manager for two years at Liverpool.
West Ham said on their Twitter account: "The club would like to thank Yossi for his efforts during his second spell with the Hammers and wish him the best of luck for his future career."
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