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Ryan La Sala Biography & Facts

The association football transfer of Emiliano Sala from FC Nantes to Cardiff City F.C. occurred on 19 January 2019. After month-long negotiations between the two clubs, Welsh-based Premier League club Cardiff City agreed to pay French Ligue 1 club Nantes a club record £15 million transfer fee for Emiliano Sala, a 28-year-old Argentine striker. Sala was Cardiff manager Neil Warnock's prime target in the club's attempt to stave off relegation during the 2018–19 season. However, two days after the transfer was completed, Sala and 59-year-old pilot David Ibbotson travelled via a private plane that disappeared over the English Channel, and an official search operation for the pair and the aircraft began immediately. The search was quickly called off, as the chances of Sala or Ibbotson surviving were deemed to be extremely remote. On 7 February, after a new search had begun, Sala's body was recovered from the wreckage of the plane, but Ibbotson's body was never recovered. It later emerged that Ibbotson was unlicensed, as well as unqualified to fly at night, and that both had been exposed to high levels of carbon monoxide during the flight. A bitter legal dispute involving the two clubs began before Sala's body had been recovered, with Nantes demanding the first of three payments for the player. Cardiff refused to make the payment, claiming Sala was not legally their player. Nantes reported Cardiff to Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), who ruled in favour of Nantes after an investigation, leading Cardiff to begin a protracted legal process with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Cardiff received a ban from buying any new players for three transfer windows, also subject to an ongoing legal appeal. The CAS hearing took place in March 2022, and in August, CAS found Cardiff liable for payment as the transfer had been completed at the time of Sala's death. In 2020, Cardiff filed papers citing wrongdoing by Nantes, an unnamed individual believed to be Nantes chairman Waldemar Kita, and agents Willie McKay and his son Mark McKay, and in 2021 accused the club of forging an antedated cheque. Though no longer a licensed agent, the elder McKay had played a central role in the transfer, including arranging meetings between the involved parties and generating fake interest in the player, and was responsible for arranging the fatal flight. He was given an official police warning for his conduct towards Cardiff members of staff in the aftermath of the transfer. Background Emiliano Sala, an Argentine striker, signed for French Ligue 1 side Nantes from Derby de l'Atlantique rivals Girondins de Bordeaux on 20 July 2015, signing a five-year contract for a fee of £600k (€1m). At the time of his move to Welsh-based Premier League club Cardiff City, he was 28 years old and was the top goalscorer for Nantes during his final season at the club, having scored 13 goals in 21 appearances, and was fifth top goalscorer in Ligue 1 that season. Sala had nearly been loaned out to Turkish Süper Lig club Galatasaray in the summer, as he was not deemed to be in the plans of manager Miguel Cardoso. Earlier in 2018, English team Brighton & Hove Albion had a bid accepted by Nantes in excess of €10m, before Sala rejected the opportunity, and he also turned down a move to Chinese Super League club Beijing Renhe the following month. At the time Cardiff established their interest in buying Sala in December 2018, they had recently been promoted from the EFL Championship, but were struggling to score goals in the Premier League, with their top goalscorer of the season to that point being makeshift centre forward Callum Paterson with four goals; the situation led Cardiff manager Neil Warnock to attend a Nantes game against Marseille in December to personally scout Sala, who would score his final ever goal in the game. Sala's contract with Nantes ran a further 18 months to June 2020, and it was believed that the club's initial asking price of £25m could be reduced to £15m, with Warnock's personal visit to France making Cardiff the most likely destination amid interest from other Premier League clubs. Transfer In December 2018, Cardiff agreed a club-record transfer fee of £15 million (€20 million) with Nantes for Sala, but later in the month Warnock announced there was doubt as to whether the deal would commence, as Nantes had changed their asking price, saying he and Cardiff would not be "held to ransom", while Cardiff chairman Mehmet Dalman admitted that their pursuit for Sala was "not going well". On 27 December, Nantes officially rejected Cardiff's offer, and it appeared increasingly unlikely the transfer would proceed as Sala reportedly favoured a move to a team participating in European competition, rather than a team battling relegation. Nantes manager Vahid Halilhodžić repeatedly express his desire for Sala to remain at the club. French newspaper L'Equipe reported that negotiations to sell Sala were being secretly undertaken with Cardiff by Nantes chairman Waldemar Kita, against the wishes of Halilhodžić, and without Sala's knowledge or involvement. Sala remained a target for Cardiff, and Warnock again travelled to France to watch Sala in action, while on 12 January Dalman revealed the deal was "not dead", asking for fans to be patient. In 2021, Dalman would claim that Warnock had gone against the wishes of the board, who had refused to sanction the cost of the transfer, and gained direct permission from Cardiff owner Vincent Tan. At the behest of Kita, Sala travelled to Cardiff on 14 January with his agent Meissa N'Diaye for a meeting with Warnock and chief executive Ken Choo, described as "constructive" by Mark McKay, Nantes' acting representative in the transfer talks. With the deal close to being completed, Sala was reported to have withdrawn from the Nantes squad scheduled to play Nîmes Olympique on 16 January, but later that evening Sala was named by Nantes as a substitute. On the morning of 18 January, Sala flew back to Cardiff to conduct a medical ahead of the transfer. which was announced to have been completed later that day. Sala rejected a "huge" offer from an undisclosed Chinese club, and the signing was completed the next day, with Sala signing a three and a half year contract, but was finalised too late for him to be able to appear in a Premier League fixture against Newcastle United the following day. Sala remained in Cardiff to complete press duties, and was officially unveiled as a Cardiff player at 7pm on 19 January following a 3–0 defeat to Newcastle, with the announcement rushed through to mitigate against fan reaction due to the loss. Cardiff promoted the transfer via social media and released a statement via the club's website titled "Sala is a Bluebird"; Sports website The Athletic reported in August 2019 that this unveiling was premature, as the Premier League had rejected the payment schedule proposed by the two clubs, with a deadline for a renewe.... Discover the Ryan La Sala popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Ryan La Sala books.