Scott Parker joined Newcastle in a £6.5million deal - then insisted: "This was the only place for me."

The Chelsea midfielder, who has agreed a five-year contract, is believed to have negotiated a pay packet of around £55,000 a week - the same deal he was on at Stamford Bridge.

The 24-year-old underwent a medical at St James' Park on Wednesday morning and will be unveiled at a 3pm press conference.

Parker said: "This is the club for me. I know other clubs were keen on me, but as soon as I heard Newcastle were interested, there was only one place I was going.

"I know some people say Newcastle may have underachieved last year, but they got to the semi-final of the FA Cup and the last eight of the UEFA Cup, and in my eyes - and a lot of people's eyes - this is still a massive club.

"The stature of this club is massive and I have a high regard for the manager, Graeme Souness.

"He is one of the reasons I have decided to come here. He has been unbelievable in all of this and so too has the chairman," he told the Newcastle Evening Chronicle.

Parker was also a target for Tottenham and Everton, who made a late bid to snatch him from Toon's grasp, but he has now become Souness' first summer signing and the Magpies are hopeful more will follow.

However, his transfer may well cause more friction between the Blues and Spurs as the player was expected to be included in any compensation package thrashed out between the two clubs over Frank Arnesen's controversial move from White Hart Lane to Stamford Bridge.

The north Londoners wanted £5million in compensation plus Parker to allow the Dane to make the move across the capital. The deal would have also prevented Spurs from making a formal complaint to the Premier League over what they consider to have been an illegal approach for their sporting director.

The two clubs remain in dialogue this week but without Parker as part of negotiations, the repercussions could be costly.

Newcastle chairman Freddy Shepherd was given permission to speak to Parker at the weekend after Everton and Tottenham dropped out of the running.

The former Charlton player cost Chelsea £10million in January 2004 but never suited the system played by Jose Mourinho.

Mourinho preferred former Real Madrid midfielder Claude Makelele for the midfield holding role and as a result Parker's first-team appearances were limited.

His situation was further compounded by a broken bone in his foot which sidelined him for much of the season as the Blues soared to their first top-flight title in 50 years.