UPDATED “ EMILIANO SALA IS AT CARDIFF CITY “

Very worried about this. £18m for a guy who's had half a season. He's on a drought now as well. Hopefully proved wrong.

My thoughts exactly. And he's had like 5 pens. Never scored more than 12 goals in a season before this one.

Now I'm worried 5 pens but he did put them away I suppose

All we need to do is fall over in the box and hope for the best

I hope we get him although like everyone else, I know nothing about him other than youtube and watching the game.

I have to say that he has movement, pace, eager to get into the box and he knows where the net is. That's good enough for me right now as you don't score goals in that league by being rubbish. Plus he can score a penalty

He has arrived at the stadium

https://twitter.com/morganedwards01/sta ... 7237441537

Also Warnock has said about him not wanting to come here, dont believe everything what you read in the media

As 2018 draws to a close and one looks back at the events of the past 12 months, perhaps it is necessary – consider-ing what he has achieved in that time – for a few people to revisit their view of Emiliano Sala. For much of his career, he has been a figure of fun for many in the French football fraternity. A tall, gangly striker with little in the way of a good first touch or control of the ball, often missing makeable chances when well-positioned, and displaying very little in the way of subtlety. He has even been referred to in some quarters as a cult hero – not necessarily a good thing for a centre-forward who should usually fit the straight-forward hero mould, rather than the more tongue-in-cheek version. However, perhaps now is the time to give Sala some credit for the career he has built for himself. Born in Santa Fe, Sala joined Bordeaux’s Argentina-based Proyecto Crecer academy as a teenager before taking the brave step of crossing to Europe to join les Girondins. Not yet ready for the Bordeaux first team, Sala was sent on loan – first to National side Orléans, where he scored 19 goals to help the team to a respectful eighth place finish; and then to Ligue 2 Chamois Niortais. Unphased by the step-up in level he achieved almost identical statistics, scoring 18 goals in 37 league appearances, placing him fourth in the scoring charts, as Niort finished an impressive fifth, surrounded by a bevy of traditional Ligue 1 clubs. Willy Sagnol saw enough to give him his chance at Bordeaux but a poor goals return, allied to the strong form of Cheick Diabaté and Thomas Touré, limited his chances. He was therefore sent on a six-month loan to Caen, where he scored against PSG on his debut and began very well before petering out at the end of the season but neverthe-less finishing up with reasonable figures of five goals and three assists in 13 matches. This was enough to convince Nantes to make a move. A fee of just €1m for a striker in his prime, however, again suggested that he was not the most highly rated of attackers.His time with Les Canaris has seen constant improvement for Sala, who has endeared himself to fans for his never say die attitude, and his hard-work, if not always his efficiency in front of goal. (The full-throated way in which he cel-ebrates every goal, whether a thunderbolt from distance or a run-of-the-mill penalty, also makes him popular.)His first season produced only six goals – although it was enough to make him the team’s top-scorer. 2016/17 then brought with it 12 goals for Sala, a reasonably impressive figure bearing in mind that Nantes were poor until Sergio Conceição joined mid-way through the season.Despite the disruption of another new coach – Claudio Ranieri – Sala maintained his position as leading striker and ended 2017/18 with another 12 league goals, although – like Nantes as a team – his form went downhill as the sea-son went on, only five of those goals coming in the first half of 2018. Yet another change of coach this past summer did not bode well for Sala, as Miguel Cardoso came in and made it clear that Sala was not in his plans. Sala came close to joining Galatasaray but ended up staying put and has been rewarded for his patience and dedication: Car-doso was quickly fired and replaced by legendary Nantes goal-scorer Vahid Halilhodzic, who has given Sala a new lease of life. Sala has hit an extraordinary run of form – by far the best of his career – which has seen him hit 12 goals so far this season – including a hat-trick against Toulouse, helping earn him Ligue 1’s Player of the Month Award for October – and placing him joint-top of the goal-scoring charts with Kylian Mbappé and Nicolas Pépé. Sala is responsible for exactly half the team’s league goals, as well as contributing two assists, including an excellent piece of hold-up play and skill to set up Abdoulaye Touré against Marseille in his most recent match. Now surrounded by arguably a better supporting cast of providers than he has done in the past, Sala is thriving. He remains modest, however: “I always give my best and try to fulfil my role, which is to score goals. Sometimes things go well, sometimes it’s harder. I’m happy to be in a purple patch. It feels great but I mustn’t get carried away.” He also gives his coach credit - “I’m lucky to have Vahid as a coach. He talks to me and offers me advice so I have to use that. I have to listen to him and keep on working in the same way” – and the feeling appears to be mutual: “I’m happy for him because when I arrived he was feeling pretty down. We’ve talked a lot together, and now when you see how much he’s giving the team, how hard he’s battling, you don’t get many strikers like him these days.”This season’s heroics have aroused great interest from the Premier League, including from Cardiff, Burnley and Ful-ham – now coached by his ex-boss Ranieri. While it may still be risky to spend too much on a 28-year-old only now finding his best form, clubs could do worse than signing a hard-working striker who will always give his all

As 2018 draws to a close and one looks back at the events of the past 12 months, perhaps it is necessary – consider-ing what he has achieved in that time – for a few people to revisit their view of Emiliano Sala. For much of his career, he has been a figure of fun for many in the French football fraternity. A tall, gangly striker with little in the way of a good first touch or control of the ball, often missing makeable chances when well-positioned, and displaying very little in the way of subtlety. He has even been referred to in some quarters as a cult hero – not necessarily a good thing for a centre-forward who should usually fit the straight-forward hero mould, rather than the more tongue-in-cheek version. However, perhaps now is the time to give Sala some credit for the career he has built for himself. Born in Santa Fe, Sala joined Bordeaux’s Argentina-based Proyecto Crecer academy as a teenager before taking the brave step of crossing to Europe to join les Girondins. Not yet ready for the Bordeaux first team, Sala was sent on loan – first to National side Orléans, where he scored 19 goals to help the team to a respectful eighth place finish; and then to Ligue 2 Chamois Niortais. Unphased by the step-up in level he achieved almost identical statistics, scoring 18 goals in 37 league appearances, placing him fourth in the scoring charts, as Niort finished an impressive fifth, surrounded by a bevy of traditional Ligue 1 clubs. Willy Sagnol saw enough to give him his chance at Bordeaux but a poor goals return, allied to the strong form of Cheick Diabaté and Thomas Touré, limited his chances. He was therefore sent on a six-month loan to Caen, where he scored against PSG on his debut and began very well before petering out at the end of the season but neverthe-less finishing up with reasonable figures of five goals and three assists in 13 matches. This was enough to convince Nantes to make a move. A fee of just €1m for a striker in his prime, however, again suggested that he was not the most highly rated of attackers.His time with Les Canaris has seen constant improvement for Sala, who has endeared himself to fans for his never say die attitude, and his hard-work, if not always his efficiency in front of goal. (The full-throated way in which he cel-ebrates every goal, whether a thunderbolt from distance or a run-of-the-mill penalty, also makes him popular.)His first season produced only six goals – although it was enough to make him the team’s top-scorer. 2016/17 then brought with it 12 goals for Sala, a reasonably impressive figure bearing in mind that Nantes were poor until Sergio Conceição joined mid-way through the season.Despite the disruption of another new coach – Claudio Ranieri – Sala maintained his position as leading striker and ended 2017/18 with another 12 league goals, although – like Nantes as a team – his form went downhill as the sea-son went on, only five of those goals coming in the first half of 2018. Yet another change of coach this past summer did not bode well for Sala, as Miguel Cardoso came in and made it clear that Sala was not in his plans. Sala came close to joining Galatasaray but ended up staying put and has been rewarded for his patience and dedication: Car-doso was quickly fired and replaced by legendary Nantes goal-scorer Vahid Halilhodzic, who has given Sala a new lease of life. Sala has hit an extraordinary run of form – by far the best of his career – which has seen him hit 12 goals so far this season – including a hat-trick against Toulouse, helping earn him Ligue 1’s Player of the Month Award for October – and placing him joint-top of the goal-scoring charts with Kylian Mbappé and Nicolas Pépé. Sala is responsible for exactly half the team’s league goals, as well as contributing two assists, including an excellent piece of hold-up play and skill to set up Abdoulaye Touré against Marseille in his most recent match. Now surrounded by arguably a better supporting cast of providers than he has done in the past, Sala is thriving. He remains modest, however: “I always give my best and try to fulfil my role, which is to score goals. Sometimes things go well, sometimes it’s harder. I’m happy to be in a purple patch. It feels great but I mustn’t get carried away.” He also gives his coach credit - “I’m lucky to have Vahid as a coach. He talks to me and offers me advice so I have to use that. I have to listen to him and keep on working in the same way” – and the feeling appears to be mutual: “I’m happy for him because when I arrived he was feeling pretty down. We’ve talked a lot together, and now when you see how much he’s giving the team, how hard he’s battling, you don’t get many strikers like him these days.”This season’s heroics have aroused great interest from the Premier League, including from Cardiff, Burnley and Ful-ham – now coached by his ex-boss Ranieri. While it may still be risky to spend too much on a 28-year-old only now finding his best form, clubs could do worse than signing a hard-working striker who will always give his all

Can't be arsed reading that is he any good or not?

As 2018 draws to a close and one looks back at the events of the past 12 months, perhaps it is necessary – consider-ing what he has achieved in that time – for a few people to revisit their view of Emiliano Sala. For much of his career, he has been a figure of fun for many in the French football fraternity. A tall, gangly striker with little in the way of a good first touch or control of the ball, often missing makeable chances when well-positioned, and displaying very little in the way of subtlety. He has even been referred to in some quarters as a cult hero – not necessarily a good thing for a centre-forward who should usually fit the straight-forward hero mould, rather than the more tongue-in-cheek version. However, perhaps now is the time to give Sala some credit for the career he has built for himself. Born in Santa Fe, Sala joined Bordeaux’s Argentina-based Proyecto Crecer academy as a teenager before taking the brave step of crossing to Europe to join les Girondins. Not yet ready for the Bordeaux first team, Sala was sent on loan – first to National side Orléans, where he scored 19 goals to help the team to a respectful eighth place finish; and then to Ligue 2 Chamois Niortais. Unphased by the step-up in level he achieved almost identical statistics, scoring 18 goals in 37 league appearances, placing him fourth in the scoring charts, as Niort finished an impressive fifth, surrounded by a bevy of traditional Ligue 1 clubs. Willy Sagnol saw enough to give him his chance at Bordeaux but a poor goals return, allied to the strong form of Cheick Diabaté and Thomas Touré, limited his chances. He was therefore sent on a six-month loan to Caen, where he scored against PSG on his debut and began very well before petering out at the end of the season but neverthe-less finishing up with reasonable figures of five goals and three assists in 13 matches. This was enough to convince Nantes to make a move. A fee of just €1m for a striker in his prime, however, again suggested that he was not the most highly rated of attackers.His time with Les Canaris has seen constant improvement for Sala, who has endeared himself to fans for his never say die attitude, and his hard-work, if not always his efficiency in front of goal. (The full-throated way in which he cel-ebrates every goal, whether a thunderbolt from distance or a run-of-the-mill penalty, also makes him popular.)His first season produced only six goals – although it was enough to make him the team’s top-scorer. 2016/17 then brought with it 12 goals for Sala, a reasonably impressive figure bearing in mind that Nantes were poor until Sergio Conceição joined mid-way through the season.Despite the disruption of another new coach – Claudio Ranieri – Sala maintained his position as leading striker and ended 2017/18 with another 12 league goals, although – like Nantes as a team – his form went downhill as the sea-son went on, only five of those goals coming in the first half of 2018. Yet another change of coach this past summer did not bode well for Sala, as Miguel Cardoso came in and made it clear that Sala was not in his plans. Sala came close to joining Galatasaray but ended up staying put and has been rewarded for his patience and dedication: Car-doso was quickly fired and replaced by legendary Nantes goal-scorer Vahid Halilhodzic, who has given Sala a new lease of life. Sala has hit an extraordinary run of form – by far the best of his career – which has seen him hit 12 goals so far this season – including a hat-trick against Toulouse, helping earn him Ligue 1’s Player of the Month Award for October – and placing him joint-top of the goal-scoring charts with Kylian Mbappé and Nicolas Pépé. Sala is responsible for exactly half the team’s league goals, as well as contributing two assists, including an excellent piece of hold-up play and skill to set up Abdoulaye Touré against Marseille in his most recent match. Now surrounded by arguably a better supporting cast of providers than he has done in the past, Sala is thriving. He remains modest, however: “I always give my best and try to fulfil my role, which is to score goals. Sometimes things go well, sometimes it’s harder. I’m happy to be in a purple patch. It feels great but I mustn’t get carried away.” He also gives his coach credit - “I’m lucky to have Vahid as a coach. He talks to me and offers me advice so I have to use that. I have to listen to him and keep on working in the same way” – and the feeling appears to be mutual: “I’m happy for him because when I arrived he was feeling pretty down. We’ve talked a lot together, and now when you see how much he’s giving the team, how hard he’s battling, you don’t get many strikers like him these days.”This season’s heroics have aroused great interest from the Premier League, including from Cardiff, Burnley and Ful-ham – now coached by his ex-boss Ranieri. While it may still be risky to spend too much on a 28-year-old only now finding his best form, clubs could do worse than signing a hard-working striker who will always give his all

Can't be arsed reading that is he any good or not?

Feck me thats a mouthful.Sounds like a modern day Gary Stevens

As 2018 draws to a close and one looks back at the events of the past 12 months, perhaps it is necessary – consider-ing what he has achieved in that time – for a few people to revisit their view of Emiliano Sala. For much of his career, he has been a figure of fun for many in the French football fraternity. A tall, gangly striker with little in the way of a good first touch or control of the ball, often missing makeable chances when well-positioned, and displaying very little in the way of subtlety. He has even been referred to in some quarters as a cult hero – not necessarily a good thing for a centre-forward who should usually fit the straight-forward hero mould, rather than the more tongue-in-cheek version. However, perhaps now is the time to give Sala some credit for the career he has built for himself. Born in Santa Fe, Sala joined Bordeaux’s Argentina-based Proyecto Crecer academy as a teenager before taking the brave step of crossing to Europe to join les Girondins. Not yet ready for the Bordeaux first team, Sala was sent on loan – first to National side Orléans, where he scored 19 goals to help the team to a respectful eighth place finish; and then to Ligue 2 Chamois Niortais. Unphased by the step-up in level he achieved almost identical statistics, scoring 18 goals in 37 league appearances, placing him fourth in the scoring charts, as Niort finished an impressive fifth, surrounded by a bevy of traditional Ligue 1 clubs. Willy Sagnol saw enough to give him his chance at Bordeaux but a poor goals return, allied to the strong form of Cheick Diabaté and Thomas Touré, limited his chances. He was therefore sent on a six-month loan to Caen, where he scored against PSG on his debut and began very well before petering out at the end of the season but neverthe-less finishing up with reasonable figures of five goals and three assists in 13 matches. This was enough to convince Nantes to make a move. A fee of just €1m for a striker in his prime, however, again suggested that he was not the most highly rated of attackers.His time with Les Canaris has seen constant improvement for Sala, who has endeared himself to fans for his never say die attitude, and his hard-work, if not always his efficiency in front of goal. (The full-throated way in which he cel-ebrates every goal, whether a thunderbolt from distance or a run-of-the-mill penalty, also makes him popular.)His first season produced only six goals – although it was enough to make him the team’s top-scorer. 2016/17 then brought with it 12 goals for Sala, a reasonably impressive figure bearing in mind that Nantes were poor until Sergio Conceição joined mid-way through the season.Despite the disruption of another new coach – Claudio Ranieri – Sala maintained his position as leading striker and ended 2017/18 with another 12 league goals, although – like Nantes as a team – his form went downhill as the sea-son went on, only five of those goals coming in the first half of 2018. Yet another change of coach this past summer did not bode well for Sala, as Miguel Cardoso came in and made it clear that Sala was not in his plans. Sala came close to joining Galatasaray but ended up staying put and has been rewarded for his patience and dedication: Car-doso was quickly fired and replaced by legendary Nantes goal-scorer Vahid Halilhodzic, who has given Sala a new lease of life. Sala has hit an extraordinary run of form – by far the best of his career – which has seen him hit 12 goals so far this season – including a hat-trick against Toulouse, helping earn him Ligue 1’s Player of the Month Award for October – and placing him joint-top of the goal-scoring charts with Kylian Mbappé and Nicolas Pépé. Sala is responsible for exactly half the team’s league goals, as well as contributing two assists, including an excellent piece of hold-up play and skill to set up Abdoulaye Touré against Marseille in his most recent match. Now surrounded by arguably a better supporting cast of providers than he has done in the past, Sala is thriving. He remains modest, however: “I always give my best and try to fulfil my role, which is to score goals. Sometimes things go well, sometimes it’s harder. I’m happy to be in a purple patch. It feels great but I mustn’t get carried away.” He also gives his coach credit - “I’m lucky to have Vahid as a coach. He talks to me and offers me advice so I have to use that. I have to listen to him and keep on working in the same way” – and the feeling appears to be mutual: “I’m happy for him because when I arrived he was feeling pretty down. We’ve talked a lot together, and now when you see how much he’s giving the team, how hard he’s battling, you don’t get many strikers like him these days.”This season’s heroics have aroused great interest from the Premier League, including from Cardiff, Burnley and Ful-ham – now coached by his ex-boss Ranieri. While it may still be risky to spend too much on a 28-year-old only now finding his best form, clubs could do worse than signing a hard-working striker who will always give his all

Can't be arsed reading that is he any good or not?

Yeah let me know too

Argentine striker Emiliano Sala is at Cardiff City with Neil Warnock, Dalman and Ken Choo discussing terms

Sky sports news just gave a glowing report on him i think there in shock that cardiff are involved in this deal.

SALA IN CARDIFF

Nantes striker Emiliano Sala has flown into South Wales in the last hour for talks and a possible medical ahead of a £20m club-record transfer to Cardiff City, Sky Sports News understands.

The fee would dwarf the £11m Cardiff paid for Chilean midfielder Gary Medel in 2013.

As 2018 draws to a close and one looks back at the events of the past 12 months, perhaps it is necessary – consider-ing what he has achieved in that time – for a few people to revisit their view of Emiliano Sala. For much of his career, he has been a figure of fun for many in the French football fraternity. A tall, gangly striker with little in the way of a good first touch or control of the ball, often missing makeable chances when well-positioned, and displaying very little in the way of subtlety. He has even been referred to in some quarters as a cult hero – not necessarily a good thing for a centre-forward who should usually fit the straight-forward hero mould, rather than the more tongue-in-cheek version. However, perhaps now is the time to give Sala some credit for the career he has built for himself. Born in Santa Fe, Sala joined Bordeaux’s Argentina-based Proyecto Crecer academy as a teenager before taking the brave step of crossing to Europe to join les Girondins. Not yet ready for the Bordeaux first team, Sala was sent on loan – first to National side Orléans, where he scored 19 goals to help the team to a respectful eighth place finish; and then to Ligue 2 Chamois Niortais. Unphased by the step-up in level he achieved almost identical statistics, scoring 18 goals in 37 league appearances, placing him fourth in the scoring charts, as Niort finished an impressive fifth, surrounded by a bevy of traditional Ligue 1 clubs. Willy Sagnol saw enough to give him his chance at Bordeaux but a poor goals return, allied to the strong form of Cheick Diabaté and Thomas Touré, limited his chances. He was therefore sent on a six-month loan to Caen, where he scored against PSG on his debut and began very well before petering out at the end of the season but neverthe-less finishing up with reasonable figures of five goals and three assists in 13 matches. This was enough to convince Nantes to make a move. A fee of just €1m for a striker in his prime, however, again suggested that he was not the most highly rated of attackers.His time with Les Canaris has seen constant improvement for Sala, who has endeared himself to fans for his never say die attitude, and his hard-work, if not always his efficiency in front of goal. (The full-throated way in which he cel-ebrates every goal, whether a thunderbolt from distance or a run-of-the-mill penalty, also makes him popular.)His first season produced only six goals – although it was enough to make him the team’s top-scorer. 2016/17 then brought with it 12 goals for Sala, a reasonably impressive figure bearing in mind that Nantes were poor until Sergio Conceição joined mid-way through the season.Despite the disruption of another new coach – Claudio Ranieri – Sala maintained his position as leading striker and ended 2017/18 with another 12 league goals, although – like Nantes as a team – his form went downhill as the sea-son went on, only five of those goals coming in the first half of 2018. Yet another change of coach this past summer did not bode well for Sala, as Miguel Cardoso came in and made it clear that Sala was not in his plans. Sala came close to joining Galatasaray but ended up staying put and has been rewarded for his patience and dedication: Car-doso was quickly fired and replaced by legendary Nantes goal-scorer Vahid Halilhodzic, who has given Sala a new lease of life. Sala has hit an extraordinary run of form – by far the best of his career – which has seen him hit 12 goals so far this season – including a hat-trick against Toulouse, helping earn him Ligue 1’s Player of the Month Award for October – and placing him joint-top of the goal-scoring charts with Kylian Mbappé and Nicolas Pépé. Sala is responsible for exactly half the team’s league goals, as well as contributing two assists, including an excellent piece of hold-up play and skill to set up Abdoulaye Touré against Marseille in his most recent match. Now surrounded by arguably a better supporting cast of providers than he has done in the past, Sala is thriving. He remains modest, however: “I always give my best and try to fulfil my role, which is to score goals. Sometimes things go well, sometimes it’s harder. I’m happy to be in a purple patch. It feels great but I mustn’t get carried away.” He also gives his coach credit - “I’m lucky to have Vahid as a coach. He talks to me and offers me advice so I have to use that. I have to listen to him and keep on working in the same way” – and the feeling appears to be mutual: “I’m happy for him because when I arrived he was feeling pretty down. We’ve talked a lot together, and now when you see how much he’s giving the team, how hard he’s battling, you don’t get many strikers like him these days.”This season’s heroics have aroused great interest from the Premier League, including from Cardiff, Burnley and Ful-ham – now coached by his ex-boss Ranieri. While it may still be risky to spend too much on a 28-year-old only now finding his best form, clubs could do worse than signing a hard-working striker who will always give his all

Can't be arsed reading that is he any good or not?

Yeah let me know too

Thought it was a sirjimmyschouler post when I saw the length on it.

As 2018 draws to a close and one looks back at the events of the past 12 months, perhaps it is necessary – consider-ing what he has achieved in that time – for a few people to revisit their view of Emiliano Sala. For much of his career, he has been a figure of fun for many in the French football fraternity. A tall, gangly striker with little in the way of a good first touch or control of the ball, often missing makeable chances when well-positioned, and displaying very little in the way of subtlety. He has even been referred to in some quarters as a cult hero – not necessarily a good thing for a centre-forward who should usually fit the straight-forward hero mould, rather than the more tongue-in-cheek version. However, perhaps now is the time to give Sala some credit for the career he has built for himself. Born in Santa Fe, Sala joined Bordeaux’s Argentina-based Proyecto Crecer academy as a teenager before taking the brave step of crossing to Europe to join les Girondins. Not yet ready for the Bordeaux first team, Sala was sent on loan – first to National side Orléans, where he scored 19 goals to help the team to a respectful eighth place finish; and then to Ligue 2 Chamois Niortais. Unphased by the step-up in level he achieved almost identical statistics, scoring 18 goals in 37 league appearances, placing him fourth in the scoring charts, as Niort finished an impressive fifth, surrounded by a bevy of traditional Ligue 1 clubs. Willy Sagnol saw enough to give him his chance at Bordeaux but a poor goals return, allied to the strong form of Cheick Diabaté and Thomas Touré, limited his chances. He was therefore sent on a six-month loan to Caen, where he scored against PSG on his debut and began very well before petering out at the end of the season but neverthe-less finishing up with reasonable figures of five goals and three assists in 13 matches. This was enough to convince Nantes to make a move. A fee of just €1m for a striker in his prime, however, again suggested that he was not the most highly rated of attackers.His time with Les Canaris has seen constant improvement for Sala, who has endeared himself to fans for his never say die attitude, and his hard-work, if not always his efficiency in front of goal. (The full-throated way in which he cel-ebrates every goal, whether a thunderbolt from distance or a run-of-the-mill penalty, also makes him popular.)His first season produced only six goals – although it was enough to make him the team’s top-scorer. 2016/17 then brought with it 12 goals for Sala, a reasonably impressive figure bearing in mind that Nantes were poor until Sergio Conceição joined mid-way through the season.Despite the disruption of another new coach – Claudio Ranieri – Sala maintained his position as leading striker and ended 2017/18 with another 12 league goals, although – like Nantes as a team – his form went downhill as the sea-son went on, only five of those goals coming in the first half of 2018. Yet another change of coach this past summer did not bode well for Sala, as Miguel Cardoso came in and made it clear that Sala was not in his plans. Sala came close to joining Galatasaray but ended up staying put and has been rewarded for his patience and dedication: Car-doso was quickly fired and replaced by legendary Nantes goal-scorer Vahid Halilhodzic, who has given Sala a new lease of life. Sala has hit an extraordinary run of form – by far the best of his career – which has seen him hit 12 goals so far this season – including a hat-trick against Toulouse, helping earn him Ligue 1’s Player of the Month Award for October – and placing him joint-top of the goal-scoring charts with Kylian Mbappé and Nicolas Pépé. Sala is responsible for exactly half the team’s league goals, as well as contributing two assists, including an excellent piece of hold-up play and skill to set up Abdoulaye Touré against Marseille in his most recent match. Now surrounded by arguably a better supporting cast of providers than he has done in the past, Sala is thriving. He remains modest, however: “I always give my best and try to fulfil my role, which is to score goals. Sometimes things go well, sometimes it’s harder. I’m happy to be in a purple patch. It feels great but I mustn’t get carried away.” He also gives his coach credit - “I’m lucky to have Vahid as a coach. He talks to me and offers me advice so I have to use that. I have to listen to him and keep on working in the same way” – and the feeling appears to be mutual: “I’m happy for him because when I arrived he was feeling pretty down. We’ve talked a lot together, and now when you see how much he’s giving the team, how hard he’s battling, you don’t get many strikers like him these days.”This season’s heroics have aroused great interest from the Premier League, including from Cardiff, Burnley and Ful-ham – now coached by his ex-boss Ranieri. While it may still be risky to spend too much on a 28-year-old only now finding his best form, clubs could do worse than signing a hard-working striker who will always give his all

Can't be arsed reading that is he any good or not?

As 2018 draws to a close and one looks back at the events of the past 12 months, perhaps it is necessary – consider-ing what he has achieved in that time – for a few people to revisit their view of Emiliano Sala. For much of his career, he has been a figure of fun for many in the French football fraternity. A tall, gangly striker with little in the way of a good first touch or control of the ball, often missing makeable chances when well-positioned, and displaying very little in the way of subtlety. He has even been referred to in some quarters as a cult hero – not necessarily a good thing for a centre-forward who should usually fit the straight-forward hero mould, rather than the more tongue-in-cheek version. However, perhaps now is the time to give Sala some credit for the career he has built for himself. Born in Santa Fe, Sala joined Bordeaux’s Argentina-based Proyecto Crecer academy as a teenager before taking the brave step of crossing to Europe to join les Girondins. Not yet ready for the Bordeaux first team, Sala was sent on loan – first to National side Orléans, where he scored 19 goals to help the team to a respectful eighth place finish; and then to Ligue 2 Chamois Niortais. Unphased by the step-up in level he achieved almost identical statistics, scoring 18 goals in 37 league appearances, placing him fourth in the scoring charts, as Niort finished an impressive fifth, surrounded by a bevy of traditional Ligue 1 clubs. Willy Sagnol saw enough to give him his chance at Bordeaux but a poor goals return, allied to the strong form of Cheick Diabaté and Thomas Touré, limited his chances. He was therefore sent on a six-month loan to Caen, where he scored against PSG on his debut and began very well before petering out at the end of the season but neverthe-less finishing up with reasonable figures of five goals and three assists in 13 matches. This was enough to convince Nantes to make a move. A fee of just €1m for a striker in his prime, however, again suggested that he was not the most highly rated of attackers.His time with Les Canaris has seen constant improvement for Sala, who has endeared himself to fans for his never say die attitude, and his hard-work, if not always his efficiency in front of goal. (The full-throated way in which he cel-ebrates every goal, whether a thunderbolt from distance or a run-of-the-mill penalty, also makes him popular.)His first season produced only six goals – although it was enough to make him the team’s top-scorer. 2016/17 then brought with it 12 goals for Sala, a reasonably impressive figure bearing in mind that Nantes were poor until Sergio Conceição joined mid-way through the season.Despite the disruption of another new coach – Claudio Ranieri – Sala maintained his position as leading striker and ended 2017/18 with another 12 league goals, although – like Nantes as a team – his form went downhill as the sea-son went on, only five of those goals coming in the first half of 2018. Yet another change of coach this past summer did not bode well for Sala, as Miguel Cardoso came in and made it clear that Sala was not in his plans. Sala came close to joining Galatasaray but ended up staying put and has been rewarded for his patience and dedication: Car-doso was quickly fired and replaced by legendary Nantes goal-scorer Vahid Halilhodzic, who has given Sala a new lease of life. Sala has hit an extraordinary run of form – by far the best of his career – which has seen him hit 12 goals so far this season – including a hat-trick against Toulouse, helping earn him Ligue 1’s Player of the Month Award for October – and placing him joint-top of the goal-scoring charts with Kylian Mbappé and Nicolas Pépé. Sala is responsible for exactly half the team’s league goals, as well as contributing two assists, including an excellent piece of hold-up play and skill to set up Abdoulaye Touré against Marseille in his most recent match. Now surrounded by arguably a better supporting cast of providers than he has done in the past, Sala is thriving. He remains modest, however: “I always give my best and try to fulfil my role, which is to score goals. Sometimes things go well, sometimes it’s harder. I’m happy to be in a purple patch. It feels great but I mustn’t get carried away.” He also gives his coach credit - “I’m lucky to have Vahid as a coach. He talks to me and offers me advice so I have to use that. I have to listen to him and keep on working in the same way” – and the feeling appears to be mutual: “I’m happy for him because when I arrived he was feeling pretty down. We’ve talked a lot together, and now when you see how much he’s giving the team, how hard he’s battling, you don’t get many strikers like him these days.”This season’s heroics have aroused great interest from the Premier League, including from Cardiff, Burnley and Ful-ham – now coached by his ex-boss Ranieri. While it may still be risky to spend too much on a 28-year-old only now finding his best form, clubs could do worse than signing a hard-working striker who will always give his all

Can't be arsed reading that is he any good or not?

Yeah let me know too

Thought it was a sirjimmyschouler post when I saw the length on it.

Me too.

Can people stop quoting that really long post please

Sky Sports

'CONSTRUCTIVE' SALA TALKS

Emiliano Sala is this evening on his way back to France after holding “constructive” talks with Cardiff City, his agent has confirmed to Sky Sports News.

The Nantes striker met with manager Neil Warnock and club’s chief executive Ken Choi for more than two hours of this afternoon.

“Emiliano was very impressed with what Neil and Mr Choo had to say and with the club itself,” his representative Mark McKay told SSN.

We understand negotiations are at an advanced stage and are this evening continuing between the player and the two clubs.

This is a serious signing . Well done

Sky Sports

'CONSTRUCTIVE' SALA TALKS

Emiliano Sala is this evening on his way back to France after holding “constructive” talks with Cardiff City, his agent has confirmed to Sky Sports News.

The Nantes striker met with manager Neil Warnock and club’s chief executive Ken Choi for more than two hours of this afternoon.

“Emiliano was very impressed with what Neil and Mr Choo had to say and with the club itself,” his representative Mark McKay told SSN.

We understand negotiations are at an advanced stage and are this evening continuing between the player and the two clubs.

This really excites me, if we pull this off, we certainly need to play to Sala strength's and get that ball into the box, he's class with his head and no nonsense when the balls at his feet in the box

Perhaps he could be the new Chris Pike or Leo Fortune-West?!

When a player travels abroad for talks and is filmed arriving at the stadium, it is usually followed by the obligatory photo holding up the jersey and confirming the signing.
Reading he is travelling back without an announcement does concern me, this is Cardiff City............ I do hope we don't get gazumped.

Buzzing with this.

We desperately needed a goalscorer and this lad has had a great season so far in France.

Proves those wrong that said we wouldn’t spend any money and the club and manager were putting out the same old lines.

Hopefully we can get it sealed as soon as possible.

Strange if he is back off to Nantes tonight, thought he was here to sign although it was reported for talks.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=203864

As 2018 draws to a close and one looks back at the events of the past 12 months, perhaps it is necessary – consider-ing what he has achieved in that time – for a few people to revisit their view of Emiliano Sala. For much of his career, he has been a figure of fun for many in the French football fraternity. A tall, gangly striker with little in the way of a good first touch or control of the ball, often missing makeable chances when well-positioned, and displaying very little in the way of subtlety. He has even been referred to in some quarters as a cult hero – not necessarily a good thing for a centre-forward who should usually fit the straight-forward hero mould, rather than the more tongue-in-cheek version. However, perhaps now is the time to give Sala some credit for the career he has built for himself. Born in Santa Fe, Sala joined Bordeaux’s Argentina-based Proyecto Crecer academy as a teenager before taking the brave step of crossing to Europe to join les Girondins. Not yet ready for the Bordeaux first team, Sala was sent on loan – first to National side Orléans, where he scored 19 goals to help the team to a respectful eighth place finish; and then to Ligue 2 Chamois Niortais. Unphased by the step-up in level he achieved almost identical statistics, scoring 18 goals in 37 league appearances, placing him fourth in the scoring charts, as Niort finished an impressive fifth, surrounded by a bevy of traditional Ligue 1 clubs. Willy Sagnol saw enough to give him his chance at Bordeaux but a poor goals return, allied to the strong form of Cheick Diabaté and Thomas Touré, limited his chances. He was therefore sent on a six-month loan to Caen, where he scored against PSG on his debut and began very well before petering out at the end of the season but neverthe-less finishing up with reasonable figures of five goals and three assists in 13 matches. This was enough to convince Nantes to make a move. A fee of just €1m for a striker in his prime, however, again suggested that he was not the most highly rated of attackers.His time with Les Canaris has seen constant improvement for Sala, who has endeared himself to fans for his never say die attitude, and his hard-work, if not always his efficiency in front of goal. (The full-throated way in which he cel-ebrates every goal, whether a thunderbolt from distance or a run-of-the-mill penalty, also makes him popular.)His first season produced only six goals – although it was enough to make him the team’s top-scorer. 2016/17 then brought with it 12 goals for Sala, a reasonably impressive figure bearing in mind that Nantes were poor until Sergio Conceição joined mid-way through the season.Despite the disruption of another new coach – Claudio Ranieri – Sala maintained his position as leading striker and ended 2017/18 with another 12 league goals, although – like Nantes as a team – his form went downhill as the sea-son went on, only five of those goals coming in the first half of 2018. Yet another change of coach this past summer did not bode well for Sala, as Miguel Cardoso came in and made it clear that Sala was not in his plans. Sala came close to joining Galatasaray but ended up staying put and has been rewarded for his patience and dedication: Car-doso was quickly fired and replaced by legendary Nantes goal-scorer Vahid Halilhodzic, who has given Sala a new lease of life. Sala has hit an extraordinary run of form – by far the best of his career – which has seen him hit 12 goals so far this season – including a hat-trick against Toulouse, helping earn him Ligue 1’s Player of the Month Award for October – and placing him joint-top of the goal-scoring charts with Kylian Mbappé and Nicolas Pépé. Sala is responsible for exactly half the team’s league goals, as well as contributing two assists, including an excellent piece of hold-up play and skill to set up Abdoulaye Touré against Marseille in his most recent match. Now surrounded by arguably a better supporting cast of providers than he has done in the past, Sala is thriving. He remains modest, however: “I always give my best and try to fulfil my role, which is to score goals. Sometimes things go well, sometimes it’s harder. I’m happy to be in a purple patch. It feels great but I mustn’t get carried away.” He also gives his coach credit - “I’m lucky to have Vahid as a coach. He talks to me and offers me advice so I have to use that. I have to listen to him and keep on working in the same way” – and the feeling appears to be mutual: “I’m happy for him because when I arrived he was feeling pretty down. We’ve talked a lot together, and now when you see how much he’s giving the team, how hard he’s battling, you don’t get many strikers like him these days.”This season’s heroics have aroused great interest from the Premier League, including from Cardiff, Burnley and Ful-ham – now coached by his ex-boss Ranieri. While it may still be risky to spend too much on a 28-year-old only now finding his best form, clubs could do worse than signing a hard-working striker who will always give his all

Can't be arsed reading that is he any good or not?

Yeah let me know too

Thought it was a sirjimmyschouler post when I saw the length on it.

I thought it was that Monty fella but then I saw a few full stops.

This is very strange

Something is not quite right with this transfer.

It seems like he is not sure and is stalling, if that is the truth then maybe its better we looked elsewhere.

Why would our manager need to travel to France twice then fly the player over here for a few hours after what sounds like months of negotiations unless there was some sort of doubt

When a player travels abroad for talks and is filmed arriving at the stadium, it is usually followed by the obligatory photo holding up the jersey and confirming the signing.
Reading he is travelling back without an announcement does concern me, this is Cardiff City............ I do hope we don't get gazumped.

I'm thinking this too. Why fly all the way from France just to have a chat? Especially after Neil has been twice?

Won’t happen. Hope we have other irons in the fire, not just a striker of course .

This is very strange

Something is not quite right with this transfer.

It seems like he is not sure and is stalling, if that is the truth then maybe its better we looked elsewhere.

Why would our manager need to travel to France twice then fly the player over here for a few hours after what sounds like months of negotiations unless there was some sort of doubt

Why come over here? All talks can be done with agent we all know transfers can take ages even in summer but jan is much worse, everyone speculates why hasn't signed by now but it's just not as simple as signing on dotted line, if he signs just welcome him like would anyone else

Bet he signs for fulham.

Can we please have another copy and paste from wiki, if he signs as confirmation.