Cardiff have completed the signing of Emiliano Sala from Ligue 1 club Nantes for a club-record fee believed to be in the region of £15million.
The Premier League club have announced the deal, which is subject to international clearance, a matter of hours after they were beaten 3-0 by Newcastle – a defeat that put them back in the relegation zone.
Sala, who has scored 12 goals in 19 games in the French top flight this season, has signed a three-and-a-half-year contract.
The 28-year-old told Cardiff’s official website: “I’m very happy to be here. It gives me great pleasure and I can’t wait to start training, meet my new team-mates and get down to work.
“For me it feels special [to be the club’s record signing]. I have come here wanting to work and to help my team-mates and the club.”
Sala, whose fee, while officially undisclosed, eclipses the previous record of £11m paid for Gary Medel in 2013, becomes Cardiff’s second signing of the January transfer window.
Oumar Niasse joined on loan from Everton last week and made his debut at St James’s Park but was unable to rescue his new side from another potentially costly defeat.
Sala began his professional career with Bordeaux before moving to Nantes in 2015, and had been tracked by the Bluebirds for some time.
Cardiff chief executive Ken Choo told his club’s official website: “It’s obviously been a long process to secure the services of Emiliano but I’m very pleased that we’re now in a position whereby we can confirm his signature.
“We see Emiliano as a significant acquisition and welcome him wholeheartedly to the capital city of Wales.”