Heartbreaking photo of missing footballer Emiliano Sala's loyal dog waiting for his return

Emiliano Sala's sister has shared a heartbreaking photograph of the footballer's loyal dog. Photo / Facebook

The sister of football star Emiliano Sala, who is believed to have died in a plane crash, has shared a heartbreaking photo of his dog waiting for his return.

Sala was aboard a plane along with pilot David Ibbotson that disappeared on January 22 when the Piper Malibu aircraft carrying them from Nantes, France to Cardiff dropped off the radar over Guernsey.

Sala was travelling to Wales to join Cardiff City, after signing a $29 million deal with his new club.

Sala's sister Romina shared the image of his rescue dog Nala staring out into the distance.

She captioned the photo: "Nala is waiting for you", the Daily Mail reports.

Nala was a regular feature on Sala's instagram account.

View this post on Instagram

Nada como ir juntos a la par#😎🐶

A post shared by Emiliano Sala (@emilianosala9) on Mar 29, 2017 at 10:03am PDT

View this post on Instagram

Que Fe te tengo 2016#saludosconlanegra

A post shared by Emiliano Sala (@emilianosala9) on Dec 31, 2015 at 1:28pm PST

Meanwhile, authorities are trying to recover the body from the plane which was found on Monday.

Britain's Air Accidents Investigation Branch said strong tidal conditions meant that progress would be slow.

"We are attempting to (recover) the body. If we are successful, we will consider the feasibility of recovering the aircraft wreckage," the statement said.

"Strong tidal conditions mean we can only use the remotely operated vehicle for limited periods each day and this will mean that progress is slow.

"Regardless of the results, we will not be making a further statement until the families have been informed."

The search for Sala and Ibbotson was initially called off after three days before Argentina and Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi and other players funded an additional rescue effort over the weekend.

Cardiff paid tribute to Sala at the start of their Premier League match against Bournemouth over the weekend - the first time the club has been in action since the tragedy.