Currently contracted with Chinese Super League Shanghai Shenhua - where he once played alongside Tim Cahill - Ba, 33, is in Sydney with his wife and children on holiday, and open to one day making Australia his next football home.

Former Senegal teammate, and one-time Sydney FC midfielder Jacques Faty tried to persuade Ba to join him at Sydney FC back in 2015.

But there were bigger fish to fry back then as Ba transitioned between Chelsea and Turkish giant Besiktas.

Sydney-based agent Ante Alilovic, who brokered the deal which took Cahill to China, has been showing Ba the sights and spruiking the delights of the Australian lifestyle to the striker who has played for 10 clubs so far in his career, including Chelsea, West Ham United and Newcastle United.

Speaking exclusively to The World Game, Ba - who has six months left on his $18 million Shanghai deal - said: “Australia could be a possibility."

“When my friend Jacques Faty was here before with Sydney, he actually told me a lot of good about the league and the city in particular.

“He even pushed me once to come here and play for a few months (as a guest player).

“But at that time, it was just not reality. But in the future who knows?

“I think back then I was between Chelsea and Besiktas, and it was difficult to take a decision like that at the time. But now it's getting more realistic.”

Ba scored 50 Premier League goals in 131 appearances, as well as 28 in 48 games for Besiktas.

He’s in his second spell Shanghai, for whom he has netted 34 in 54 matches.

How much longer he remains in the ever turbulent CSL is in question, even though he has an option to re-commit at the end of his current contract.

“I had a very good first season there playing with Tim Cahill and we enjoyed our time together,” he said.

“I then got injured (a broken leg) and I’m back there again (after a spell in Turkey) and the league has changed a lot.

“It’s a bit more difficult, I would say, than it was the first time.

“But I’ve still managed to enjoy it. I can’t tell what future holds.

“It all depends how this off-season will go.

“Physically I still feel good. The rest just depends on the motivation.

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“I need to find something that excites me and gets me going because the last six months (in China) was a bit okay.

“Regarding Australia. You can never tell. Ante has been telling me all the good about it and he’s been doing a good job at that and he’s a very good guy.

“But I knew that anyway ... the people are friendly and welcoming.”

Alilovic believes only Sydney FC or Melbourne Victory would be in a position to, at some stage, sign Ba.

“For me, it’s probably between those two clubs (Sydney or Victory) should he end up in the A-League,” Alilovic said.

“He would likely have other offers in China or the MLS (if he severed ties with Shanghai), but when it comes to lifestyle Australia could be a big winner.”

Ba is most famous - or notorious if you’re a Liverpool fan - for scoring the goal which blew apart their Premier League title surge in 2015.

With a first top-flight championship since 1990 seemingly in the bag, Ba pounced on a slip up from Reds legend Steven Gerrard to race clear and fire the Blues’ opener in a 2-0 win at Anfield which precipitated their title denouement.

Ba takes up the story: “For me the goal wasn’t spectacular other than the fact that it stopped Liverpool, at that time, from winning the league.”

"Everybody still talks about it - even Ante is a Liverpool fan and when you mention it, his face changes and he starts getting mad.

“It was a huge deal at the time ... Liverpool were a few points clear with three games to go and everybody thought they would win it.

“We at Chelsea had just lost our chance to defend the title by losing to Sunderland at home the week before, and Jose Mourinho made a few changes going up to Anfield.

“He gave starts to a few players that hadn’t had much game time during the season.

“But this is Chelsea and we wanted to win every game.

“People would maybe have forgotten the incident if Liverpool had gone in to win the league, while Gerrard was still there.

“But the fact is he never got to win a title during his career there.

“The mistake he made was the wrong place at the wrong time for him, and the right place and the right time for me.”