Sala mourned as Bluebirds stand strong
OUTSIDE the turnstiles, a young Cardiff supporter clung to his father’s hand and peered more closely at the growing collection of shirts, scarves and wreaths.
‘Look Dad, there’s a Swansea one too,’ the little boy said. Beside the Fred Keenor statue, the donations came from far, wide and very close to home. There lay garments from Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal.
There were messages from every continent. Children drew matchstick men with heartfelt messages. One mourner had left a pair of football boots, inscribing the message: ‘A young man with the world at his feet.’
This should have been the home debut of Emiliano Sala. Instead, it became an exercise in grief for a football club still reeling from his tragic disappearance.
If the reflections of Claudio Ranieri, Sala’s former manager at Nantes, are anything to go by, this was a Cardiff victory the Argentine would have relished.
‘Emiliano was a player who put his head where others do not dare to put their feet,’ Ranieri said.
Cardiff were magnificent, summoning the pain and agony of the past fortnight to outfight and, at times, outplay a Bournemouth team that on Wednesday beat Chelsea by four goals. For a Cardiff side with only one victory in eight, this was a crucial victory for more conventional reasons, as it also lifted Neil Warnock’s side to within two points of safety.
Bournemouth were without the injured Callum Wilson and David Brooks, handing a first start to Dominic Solanke since the striker’s £19million move from Liverpool. He lasted only an hour.
But this is a story of Cardiff defiance.
Bournemouth did provide a helping hand, quite literally, when Steve Cook inexplicably leapt in the air and punched the ball away to give Cardiff a penalty inside four minutes. Bobby Reid converted and Cardiff’s team, cajoled by captain Sol Bamba, scurried over to the dugout, where they unveiled a blue T-shirt featuring a print of Sala’s face.
It was another heartfelt moment on a tearjerking day. ‘Emiliano, our beautiful bluebird,’ read the matchday programme, dedicating eight pages, and the striker’s face adorned the cover.
Supporters wore daffodils, the flower that has assumed a sharing meaning, harnessing the Welsh national symbol and the yellow strip of Sala’s former club Nantes. A mosaic appeared behind the goal, emblazoning ‘Sala’ in yellow letters upon the blue and white of the Argentinian flag.
The home crowd, emotional but defiant, belted out Men of Harlech, that most powerful of Welsh anthems, with added vigour. As players bowed heads for the minute of silence on the centre circle, advertising hoardings broke off from the promotion of sportswear and gambling firms. They simply read, ‘For Emiliano, for David’, also supporting the missing pilot David Ibbotson.
Sala’s face appeared on the big screens at both ends. In the circumstances, Cardiff’s resolve was inspiring. Bamba and his defensive partner Bruno Ecuele Manga were immovable objects. Oumar Niasse was tireless up front, turning poor balls into good ones.
Bournemouth did grow into the game and Andrew Surman’s curling strike brought an eye-catching save from Neil Etheridge, who tipped on to the bar. Despite Bournemouth’s territorial dominance, chances rarely came and Cardiff doubled the lead thirteen seconds after the interval, as Reid nipped on to Aron Gunarsson’s ball, dribbled past Boruc and slid into the empty goal.
On the final whistle, Warnock applauded the crowd and punched the air while holding back the tears.