Cardiff complete club-record signing of Emiliano Sala
According to Sky Sports, Cardiff City have secured the services of Argentine striker Emiliano Sala from Ligue 1 club Nantes for a club-record fee believed to be in the region of £15 million, beating the previous record of £11 million that they paid to Sevilla for Chilean midfielder Gary Medel.
The Bluebirds got the deal done just hours after their 3-0 defeat in the Premier League at the hands of Newcastle United on Saturday, with the 28-year-old being Neil Warnock’s second signing in January following the acquisition of Oumar Niasse on loan from Everton.
Cardiff slipped to 18th in the standings after the 3-0 defeat and the Bluebirds will be hoping for their record signing to make a big impact on the proceedings in the second half of the season.
Neil Warnock’s side have managed to score only 19 goals so far, the joint second lowest in the Premier League, with Callum Paterson playing as a makeshift striker to cover for the lack of a specialist centre-forward.
Sala has been in fine form in Ligue 1 this season, scoring 12 goals from 19 appearances and Neil Warnock will need him to make an instant impact to steer the team to safety.
The 28-year-old told Cardiff’s official website: “I’m very happy to be here. It gives me great pleasure and I can’t wait to start training, meet my new team-mates and get down to work.
“For me, it feels special [to be the club’s record signing]. I have come here wanting to work and to help my team-mates and the club.”
CEO & Executive Director, Ken Choo, added: “It’s obviously been a long process to secure the services of Emiliano.
“I’d like to thank those involved for making the signing happen, especially Tan Sri Vincent and the rest of the transfer committee.
“We see Emiliano as a significant acquisition and welcome him wholeheartedly to the capital city of Wales.”
