Ghana soccer star Christian Atsu is missing after earthquakes hit Turkey and Syria on Monday; There had been reports the 31-year-old had been rescued but Hatayspor director said on Wednesday the Former Newcastle winger has still not been located.
The Former Premier League star, was in an 11-story building when the 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck on Monday morning – causing devastation in the region. More than 11,000 people are known to have been killed by the event, with rescue attempts ongoing.
Christian Atsu is on the books at Hatayspor. The Turkish club’s manager Mustafa Ozat said Atsu was removed from the wreckage on Tuesday, while the Ghana Football Association said: “We’ve received some positive news that Christian Atsu has been successfully rescued from the rubble of the collapsed building and is receiving treatment. Let’s continue to pray for Christian.”
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But club doctor Gurbey Kahveci has now said the club yet to locate the 31-year-old.
“When we heard the news that he was taken to Dortyol Hospital, we especially went and looked, but he was not there,” Kahveci told reporters. “At the moment, we accept that [the sporting director] Savut Taner and Christian Atsu were not found unfortunately.”
Christian Atsu’s international team-mate Mubarak Wakaso has also confirmed he is yet to hear from him. “Following yesterday’s update from the club that Christian had been pulled out alive, we are yet to confirm Christian’s whereabouts,” wrote Wakaso on Instagram.
“As you can imagine, this continues to be a devastating time for his family, and we are doing everything we can to locate Christian. Official updates will be provided as more information comes to light.
“Please respect the family’s privacy during this harrowing time, and refrain from spreading unsubstantiated news, as this will only hamper the search efforts for Christian. Thank you for all your prayers and support.”
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Atsu’s agent Nana Sechere – who hasn’t spoken to the player since the earthquake – was told he was alive. He told Mirror Football: “The last I heard from him was at midnight on Sunday. Christian and his team-mates were playing poker until 3:30am at a friend’s apartment.
“The journey back to his apartment was around half an hour. He returned at 4am and the earthquake started around 20 minutes later. I didn’t know anything until I received a call from a club official at 5am asking if I’d heard from Christian Atsu.
“He told me Christian’s building had been completely destroyed and that they couldn’t get hold of him. I was hoping he was awake and that the earthquake hadn’t happened while he was sleeping. He was in an 11-storey building and he was on the ninth floor.
“The club officials were trying to help me find him, but it was so hard because, understandably, they were trying to find their own friends and families as well. There were lots of reports out of England and Ghana that Christian Atsu was safe but the first official confirmation I had was from the club at 6am on Tuesday morning.
” They told me that he was in hospital and that he is stable. He doesn’t have his phone and, like all of us, he can’t remember his numbers by heart, so I have to continue to wait to speak to him.”
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