Emiliano Sala begged pals to ‘send someone to find me’ in chilling WhatsApp voice note minutes before doomed plane went down

FOOTIE star Emiliano Sala told friends to "send someone" to find him in chilling voice messages minutes before his plane vanished.

Sala, 28, is feared dead after his small private plane went off radar over the English Channel on Monday night.

The Argentine ace sent panicked WhatsApp voice messages to his pals as conditions rapidly worsened while he was in the air, Argentinian newspaper Ole reported.

He wrote: "Boys, I'm here on top of the plane that looks like it's about to fall apart. And I'm going to Cardiff, crazy, tomorrow we already started. In the afternoon we started to train, boys, in my new team.”

Premier League ace Sala later sent another message saying: “If you do not have any more news from in an hour and a half, I don’t know if they need to send someone to find me... I am getting scared!”

It came as sources told The Sun that the Piper PA-46 Malibu plane, which was travelling from Nantes to Cardiff, only managed to take off after up to four attempts.

Latest updates on Sala's missing plane:

• Piper PA-46 Malibu plane lost contact off Alderney at 8.30pm on Monday with a pilot and footballer Emiliano Sala on board.
• Rescue teams called off the search on Tuesday night and said they are 'not expecting to find anyone alive'.
• Sala sent WhatsApp voice messages to his pals saying he feared the plane was going to 'fall apart'.
• The plane was travelling from Nantes to Cardiff, where Sala was due to start training with his new team.
• The Sun revealed that the plane only managed to take off after four attempts.

CHILLING PREMONITION

"Hello, little brothers, how are you crazy?" Brother, I'm dead, I was here in Nantes doing things…and you do not end any more and you do not finish anymore,” Sala can be heard saying in the audio.

I am getting scared!

Emiliano Sala

While an aeronautical expert has now claimed the flight should never have left the runway.

Commander Jorge Polanco told Argentinian network : "The Piper Malibu is an excellent single-engine aircraft , which has the capacity for seven people, but I am very surprised that they have been doing this operation flying at night, with what is the European winter at the moment."

He added: "It's like flying in Antarctica in the winter with an airplane of that size, which can suffer from what is called icing, thus stopping the engine and I think something related to that has happened."

BUMPY JOURNEY

The footballer’s dad confirmed that his son could be heard in the recording.

Sala, who is from Argentina, had sent a similar message to former Nantes teammate Nicolas Pallois, L’Équipe reported.

He is understood to have "feared his safety on the bumpy return journey back to the UK".

Sala also text his friends to say the plane was making "weird noises".

The plane had been flying at 5,000ft but requested to land while passing Guernsey.

It was last detected at 2,300ft when they lost contact with Jersey air traffic controllers just off Alderney at 8.30pm on Monday.

'NOT EXPECTING TO FIND ANYONE ALIVE'

Coastguard helicopters and lifeboats scoured 1,100 square miles of sea before stopping the search at nightfall on Tuesday.

They found floating objects in the water, but the rescue boss warned they are "not expecting to find anyone alive".

A Guernsey Police spokesman said: "We have found no signs of those on board. If they did land on the water, the chances of survival are at this stage, unfortunately, slim."

While the American-made Piper-P46 Malibu generally has a good safety record, there have been instances of such planes crashing in bad weather.

POIGNANT FINAL POST

Sala made a poignant social media post saying his "last goodbye" just hours before his plane went missing.

Cardiff's record signing completed his £15million move to the Premier League club over the weekend to help boost their fight to avoid relegation.

The 28-year-old then made a quick trip back to North-West France where he wanted to collect some belongings before making his permanent switch to Wales.

Sala used the opportunity to visit his Nantes team-mates where he caught up with the squad and then posed for a group photograph as a memento of the moment.

And in a poignant message, the Argentinian posted the snap to his Instagram account with the simple message "La Ultima Ciao" - "The last goodbye".

Sala then left the club to make the trip back to South Wales - and has yet to arrive amid reports a light-aircraft has gone missing somewhere near the Channel Islands.

FEARS GROWING

Cardiff and Nantes are both growing in concern for the striker, and are actively trying to establish if the player was on board.

Guernsey police have revealed that the search for the PA 46 Malibu aircraft resumed at 8am this morning, though at this stage no trace of the plane has been found.

Cardiff released a statement which confirms they are fearing the worst.

Chairman Mehmet Dalman said: “We are very concerned by the latest news that a light aircraft lost contact over the Channel last night.

"We are awaiting confirmation before we can say anything further.

We are very concerned for the safety of Emiliano Sala.

Cardiff City Chairman Mehmet Dalman

"We are very concerned for the safety of Emiliano Sala."

Cardiff City CEO Ken Choo  said the club were "very shocked" by the news and training had been cancelled as the players reacted to the tragedy.

He added: "We expected Emiliano to arrive last night into Cardiff and today was due to be his first day with the team.

"Our owner, Tan Sri Vincent Tan, and chairman, Mehmet Dalman, are all very distressed about the situation."

FAMILY 'DESPERATE'

Sala’s “desperate” family has been speaking to South American media as they wait for information.

The star’s dad, Horatio, told Argentine TV station Channel 5 News: “A friend told me, I did not know anything, I’m in Rosario, I’m desperate, I hope everything goes well.”

He added: "I spoke to Emiliano on Sunday.

"Still nobody from Nantes has communicated with us, we are worried, desperate, this took us all by surprise.

I did not know anything, I’m in Rosario. I’m desperate, I hope everything goes well

Emiliano Sala's dad, Horatio

"I don't have any information on the journey, the only thing I know is that it was a small plane.

"They are saying that the plane lost control in the channel. I don't know what could have happened. I am speechless."

His mum, Mercedes, added: “The plane is from the President of Cardiff City FC, they informed us that the plane had disappeared and that they were looking for it.”

SENDING PRAYERS

Thousands of people have joined vigils to the footballer in France and Wales.

Friends and fans have laid wreaths outside Sala's former club in Nantes and outside the ground of Cardiff City where he was due to start training on Tuesday morning.

Sala's former teammates have expressed their concern, including French Guingamp midfielder Lucas Deaux who tweeted: 'I hope from the bottom of my heart that this is not true.'

Amine Harit, a Moroccan footballer who played with Sala at Nantes before joining German side FC Schalke in 2017, suggested he was praying for the missing player in a tweet.

He wrote simply 'Emi..' followed by a string of praying hands and crying emojis.