PROGRESO, Argentina – Grieving Argentines paid tribute to footballer Emiliano Sala on Saturday at a special memorial in his home region of Santa Fe.
The body of the 28-year old Sala, who died in a plane crash last month, was laid out in a gymnasium in the town where he grew up so friends and family could pay their last respects.
A single-engine plane carrying Sala from his French club Nantes to his new team Cardiff City crashed on Jan. 21 in the English Channel, before he could make his debut for the Premier League side.
Wreckage was found on Feb. 3 following a privately-funded underwater search and a body recovered three days later.
Sala’s body was flown back to Argentina and arrived in Buenos Aires on Friday morning before being driven the 538 km (334 miles) to Progreso, where he grew up.
The gymnasium of the Atletico y Social San Martin de Progreso club hosted boys’ teams where Sala played as a child.
