FC Nantes and Ligue 1 Remember Emiliano Sala

Wednesday was an emotional night for Ligue 1 and FC Nantes as they held a moving tribute to former player Emiliano Sala who disappeared last week along with pilot David Ibbotson. As the Nantes players walked out, with a somber look on their faces they were clad in t-shirts that read “We love you Emi”. Before the match began the team huddled together and were heard saying “We’re doing this for him boys” as opponents St. Etienne wore “Pray for Emi” shirts.

Fans around the Stade de la Beaujoire unveiled giant images of the 28-year-old including an Argentinian flag and a handful of Cardiff fans who made the trip to Nantes help up a banner reading ‘We never saw you play and never saw you score, but Emiliano our beautiful Bluebird we will love you forever more.’

In the ninth minute of the match, the same as Sala’s jersey number the referee stopped the match for a minute of silence as the stadium resounded with “Emiliano Sala” which reduced Nantes boss Vahid Halilhodzic to tears.

The match concluded in a draw with St Etienne scoring first, shortly followed by a crucial pass from Coulibaly to Abdul Waris who scored sparking emotional celebrations.

Sala scored 48 goals from 133 appearances for Nantes after spending four years with the Ligue 1 team before signing to Cardiff City earlier this month.

Last Monday he was on his way to the Welsh capital when his plane disappeared. A few days later after as rescuers announced they would stop the investigation, the football world came together following requests from the Sala family to keep searching. Fellow Argentines Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero also urged authorities to keep searching.

Aguero stated:

“We don’t want to give up, we want to hold on to hope. That’s why I also wish #NoDejenDeBuscar – don’t call off the search. From the start, my thoughts have been with Emiliano, his family and friends #PrayForSala“

After setting up a Gofundme page, Paris Saint-Germain players including Kylian Mbappe and Adrien Rabbit donated 30,000 euros each. Premier League players Ilkay Gundogan and Laurent Koscielny both donated 2,000 euro.