Fears grow for Christian Atsu after Turkey earthquake

Fears are growing for the safety of former Chelsea and Newcastle United footballer Christian Atsu after he was one of several players reportedly caught up in Monday morning’s devastating earthquake.

Atsu, the 31-year-old Ghana international, currently plays for Turkish Super Lig club Hatayspor in Kahramanmaras, which was one of the regions hit heavily by the 7.8 magnitude earthquake in the early hours.

A second earthquake of 7.5 magnitude then struck a nearby region around noon local time on Monday, causing further destruction.

According to reports in Turkey, Atsu is one of several members of Hatayspor’s playing and backroom staff currently unaccounted for. Many have already been pulled from the rubble after rescue operations were launched, with at least 1,500 people dead. A further 800 are feared dead in Syria.

Turkish publication Star reports that Atsu’s team-mate, Burak Oksuz, was one of those rescued when he was pulled from a collapsed building wearing a Hatayspor jersey. Another player, Bertuf Yildirim, is reported to have been rescued.

But fears are growing for the safety of Atsu and other members of the Turkish team.

Atsu was part of the Newcastle team which won promotion back to the Premier League in 2017 after joining on loan for the season from Chelsea, and later completed a permanent move.

Atsu, who scored deep into stoppage time on Sunday to secure a 1-0 win over Kasimpasa, left St James’ Park during the summer of 2021 after making 121 appearances for the club.

A post on Newcastle’s Twitter account said: “Praying for some positive news, @ChristianAtsu20.”

As well as Chelsea and Newcastle, Atsu also spent time on loan with Everton and Bournemouth.

Bournemouth said: “Everyone at AFC Bournemouth is hoping for positive news regarding Christian Atsu.

“Our thoughts are with all affected by the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria.”

Star also reported that the club’s sporting director, Taner Savut, was also unaccounted for and feared trapped in the rubble

Hatayspor technical director Ekrem Eksioglu and coach Osman Ates were confirmed safe and well, as was Atsu’s team-mate Kerim Alici.