The plane carrying missing Cardiff City striker Emiliano Sala and pilot David Ibbotson has been found on the seabed of the English channel.

Sala and Ibbotson have been missing since January 21, when the Piper Malibu aircraft they were traveling on went off the radar en route to Cardiff from Nantes.

Initial searches found no trace of the aircraft, but private searches have since taken over and Sky News reports that wreckage of the plane was found on the seabed this morning.

The families of both Sala and Ibbotson - who remain missing presumed dead - were told about the development by private investigators earlier today.

Sala was travelling to Cardiff to join up with his new teammates having recently completed a club-record £15m move to the Bluebirds from Nantes.

The underwater search, which is focusing on an area of just four square miles, is scheduled to last for three days.