Cardiff chase £80m compensation from Nantes as they claim death of Emiliano Sala cost them Prem relegation

CARDIFF CITY have hit Nantes with a sensational £80million compensation case and claim the death of Emiliano Sala cost them relegation from the money-hungry Premier League.

The Bluebirds have put the cost of relegation from the top flight at £80million in TV rights, advertising and sponsorship, according to a new book, The Truth – The Killing of Emiliano Sala, released today.

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The Championship club proposed whether to pay Nantes the £15million transfer fee during the latest appeal hearing at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

The Welsh club have used the Carlos Tevez case from 2007 – when West Ham broke the rules on third-player ownership.

Sheffield United then argued that instead of a record penalty they should have had points deducted – and that the Blades should not have been relegated.

The Yorkshire club settled on £26.5million. But including around £20m in parachute payments, Cardiff’s claim totals £80m.

Ironically Neil Warnock was the manager when Sheffield United were relegated 15 years ago, although he left Cardiff just before relegation in 2019.

Cardiff blames the French club for Sala’s death because agent Willie McKay acted on their behalf and organized the plane for Sala that crashed in the English Channel more than three years ago.

Warnock was convinced that just a few goals from Sala would have been enough to keep them going – and that they could not have bought an alternative striker as the window had closed at the time of the tragedy.

Cardiff always claimed the Prem considered the contract “illegal” based on the structure of sign-up advance payments, which Nantes had insisted on and which the Welsh club had warned would fail the scrutiny.

Argentina’s Sala was ineligible to play in the Premier League at the time he got on the plane.

Cardiff asked CAS to rule, as the Tevez case ended up in a tribunal and not in civil court as first threatened.

Nantes vehemently opposed such a decision by CAS, with Cardiff proposing offsetting the £15m transfer fee against the £80m compensation claim.

The precedent Cardiff bases their claims on dates back to 2007 when Sheffield United sued West Ham over relegation costs.

The Blades and several other Prem clubs felt the Hammers should have points deducted for violating third-party ownership rules on their two Argentine signings, Tevez and Javier Mascherano.

Instead, West Ham were handed a record £5.5million penalty.

Cardiff believes they have a strong case and a chance of success – most likely in the French courts – if they don’t get what they believe is justice at the CAS hearing.

l THE TRUTH – THE KILLING OF EMILIANO SALA – The Complete Shocking Story by Harry Harris OUT NOW goes to the Emiliano Sala Memorial Fund. Price £11.95