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Emiliano Sala in a match against Guingamp. Check the uploader’s description below. By Fabrizio Neitzke –

Top 10 Incredible Facts about Emiliano Sala

Emiliano Ral Sala Taffarel was an Argentine professional footballer who played as a striker. He was born on October 31, 1990, in the town of Cull, Santa Fe Province, Argentina, to Horacio Sala and Mercedes Taffarel.

Sala perished in an aircraft crash off the coast of Alderney on January 21, 2019. He was traveling from Nantes to Cardiff in a Piper Malibu light aircraft. An initial three-day search across the English Channel covered 4,400 square kilometers (1,700 square miles). Following two private searches, the wreckage was discovered on 3 February 2019; Sala’s body was retrieved four days later.

However, here are some of the top 10 incredible facts about Emiliano Sala that his fans should consider knowing;

1. He began  his playing football career   for San Martín de Progreso

Sala (right) playing for Nantes in 2015, By Clément Bucco-Lechat –

Sala began playing football for San Martin de Progreso. He remained a member of the team till he was 15 years old. Sala later transferred to San Francisco, Córdoba to play at Proyecto Crecer after being seen by a soccer scout.

2. In consecutive seasons, he had successful loan periods with Championnat National club Orléans, Ligue 2 side Niort, and Ligue 1 side Caen

Sala spent his whole professional career in France before moving to Cardiff, with Bordeaux providing his football upbringing since 2010.

He was initially sent out to lower levels of the game, demonstrating his talent as a marksman during the 2012-13 season at third-tier Orleans, when he tallied 18 goals in 37 appearances, and then a year later one level up with Niort.

3. Challenge Emiliano Sala was established in the honor of Sala

Emiliano Sala in a match against Guingamp. Check the uploader’s description below. By Fabrizio Neitzke –

In Sala’s honor, a competition named the Challenge Emiliano Sala was established in 2021. It was contested in France by four of Sala’s former clubs, with Bordeaux taking the first title. The Emiliano Sala Challenge is an annual friendly football match held in memory of Argentine midfielder Emiliano Sala, who died in a plane disaster on 21 January 2019. Girondins de Bordeaux, Stade Malherbe Caen, FC Nantes, and Chamois Niortais, all former Sala clubs, competed in the first edition in 2021. 

4. He was recommended to Portuguese District side FC Crato 

While living in Granada, Spain, in 2009, he was referred to Portuguese District side FC Crato by another Argentine footballer who played there and joined the Portuguese squad. Sala played one official match for Crato, scoring twice, before abruptly leaving the club and returning to Argentina, claiming that his girlfriend was “in jeopardy” in his native country. 

5. His salary

Sala, who joined Nantes from Bordeaux in 2015, had signed for Cardiff, then in the English Premier League, in January 2019 for a reported £15 million ($19.3 million).

Cardiff City has lost a titsappeal against a FIFA judgment requiring the Welsh club to pay a portion of Emiliano Sala’s $19.3 million (£15 million) transfer fee to Nantes, following a Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruling directing the Welsh club to pay $6 million to his previous team.

6. He was compared to Jamie Vardy

Vardy playing for England at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, By Кирилл Венедиктов –

Sala was compared to Jamie Vardy by BBC Sport, who described him as “a player who prefers wide spaces and being part of a side that has a powerful counter-attacking style.” A tall and powerful striker, he was also praised for his ability to hold the ball up and for his “decent” pace; he was also praised in the media for his work rate, persistence, eye for goal, and finishing ability.

Jamie Richard Vardy is an English professional footballer who currently plays for Premier League club Leicester City as a striker. Between 2015 and 2018, he was a member of the England national team. He is well-known for his prodigious goal-scoring ability, which is enhanced by his movement, explosive pace, clinical finishing, and tactical acumen. 

7. He claimed to have modeled his style after former Argentine international attacker Gabriel Batistuta

Two milestone goals by Gabriel Batistuta in Copa América finals: 1991 vs Colombia (left) and 1993 vs Mexico, By Unknown author –

Sala remarked that he shares some qualities with Gabriel Batistuta. He even admitted to having seen it a lot. However, constantly consider all of the forwards. When he is watching sports on TV, he analyzes the attackers tactically: how they move, when they confront one another, how they score,… and he remembers all of this for when he is in such situations, so he knows what to do and what the solutions are.

8. Messi is his favorite player and club

Messi’s six Ballon d’Or awards are on display in the FC Barcelona Museum. His record sixth from 2019 is at the front. By ΖῷονΠολιτικόν –Wikipedia

Sala stated that his favorite player is undoubtedly Messi because you might not see him for twenty minutes and then when he gets the ball and he performs extraordinary things. He is the only player that can do what he does. Then there’s Independiente, which is now in the second tier. In Argentina, he played for a club that is a subsidiary of Bordeaux, which is how he ended up there.

9. His body was found 4 days after the plane went missing

Tributes laid outside the Cardiff City Stadium following Sala’s disappearance, By Dennis Kallmer –

Sala perished in an aircraft crash off the coast of Alderney on January 21, 2019. He was traveling from Nantes to Cardiff in a Piper Malibu light aircraft. An initial three-day search across the English Channel covered 4,400 square kilometers (1,700 square miles). Following two private searches, the wreckage was discovered on 3 February 2019; Sala’s body was retrieved four days later.

10. His honours and achievement

Kylian Mbappé holds the record for most individual Player of the Month awards, with seven. By Sandro Halank,

Sala made more than 100 appearances in Ligue 1, and achieved a successful goal-scoring record, finishing as the club’s top goal scorer for three consecutive seasons.  This enabled me to get the UNFP Ligue 1 Player of the Month: February 2015, October 2018, and Nantes Team of the Decade: 2010–2019.