Emiliano Sala: Fears for new Premier League striker who was on board a plane that went missing over the English Channel

Argentinian footballer Emiliano Sala was on board a plane that went missing over the English Channel on Monday night, French media have reported.
Cardiff's record signing Emiliano Sala Image: Cardiff city FC/TwitterCardiff's record signing Emiliano Sala Image: Cardiff city FC/Twitter
Cardiff's record signing Emiliano Sala Image: Cardiff city FC/Twitter

Argentinian footballer Emiliano Sala was on board a plane that went missing over the English Channel on Monday night, French media have reported.

The Nantes striker was announced as a new signing for Premier League club Cardiff City on Saturday.

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French media, quoting police sources, said the 28-year-old striker was on the light aircraft that disappeared from radar on Monday night while apparently flying from Nantes to Cardiff.

French media have reported that Sala was driven to the airport by Nantes defender Nicolas Pallois.

Premier League strugglers Cardiff paid a club record fee in the region of £15 million for the footballer, one of the leading scorers in the French Ligue 1.

Sala posted a photo to his Instagram and Twitter accounts on Monday afternoon posing with the rest of the Nantes squad.

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He captioned the photo: "The final [heart emoji] goodbye @FCNantes."

Police on Guernsey said the search for the plane resumed at 8am on Tuesday, adding: "At this time no trace of the missing aircraft had been found."

The search had been called off at 2am "due to strengthening winds, worsening sea conditions and reducing visibility".

Police said in a statement that the aircraft left Nantes at 1915 for Cardiff and was flying at 5,000 feet.

The statement added: "The aircraft on passing Guernsey requested descent. Jersey ATC (air traffic control) lost contact whilst it was flying at 2,300 feet."