Liam Payne and Sophia Smith have reportedly split

Liam Payne of One Direction has reportedly broken up with his girlfriend of two years, Sophia Smith.

Daily Mail reported that a source close to the couple opened up about the split. "Liam and Sophia have split. Liam is incredibly sad, but is going to keep busy. He really hopes that everybody will respect both his and Sophia's privacy and stop speculating," explained the source.

The two had been longtime friends before starting to date in 2013. They met during their early schooldays in Wolverhampton, England and had been considered by many to be the strongest couple when it came to One Direction relationships.

As previously reported, this breakup report has surfaced only days after Payne had to cancel a One Direction concert because he felt ill. The group was scheduled to perform in Belfast but had to reschedule the performance for later in the week.

One Direction has been experiencing numerous breakups. Louis Tomlinson broke up with his long-term girlfriend Eleanor Calder and Zayn Malik ended his engagement with Perrie Edwards from Little Mix back in August.