Cardiff 'very concerned' over Sala's disappearance

Cardiff City chairman Mehmet Dalman said Monday the English Premier League club were “very concerned” over the disappearance of a light aircraft in which their record signing Emiliano Sala was a passenger.

The Argentine striker, signed by Cardiff on Saturday from French club Nantes for a reported club record £15 million ($19 million), was flying to Cardiff aboard a small plane that disappeared from radars around 20 kilometres (12 miles) north of Guernsey on Monday, French and Channel Islands authorities said.

A statement from police on Guernsey, a British island just off the coast of France, said lifeboats and helicopters had searched for several hours for the plane, which had two people on board, without success.

“We are very concerned by the latest news that a light aircraft lost contact over the Channel last night,” Dalman said.

“We are awaiting confirmation before we can say anything further. We are very concerned for the safety of Emiliano Sala.”

Sala, 28, who had been at Nantes since 2016 and had scored 12 league goals this season, had signed a three-and-a-half-year contract with relegation-threatened Cardiff subject to receiving international clearance.