What happened to Christian Atsu? Ex-Chelsea star goes missing after Turkey earthquakes

Ghanaian footballer Christian Atsu reportedly went missing after the earthquakes that hit Turkey and Syria on Monday. The 31-year-old former Chelsea and Newcastle was said to be missing after his teammate and club staff were pulled out from the rubble. Multiple reports on Monday evening claimed that the Hatayspor player was found alive, but the reports remain unconfirmed by Hatayspor.

A 7.8 magnitude earthquake shook Syria and Turkey in the early hours of February 6, with several more following throughout the day. The earthquake majorly impacted the southern part of Turkey and northern part of Syria and has reportedly claimed near to 4000 lives so far. As reported by Goal, Turkish journalist Yagiz Sabucuoglu claimed that the Hatayspor vice-President Mustafa Ozar s=gas said that the club is still trying to reach Atsu.

"We're praying for you, Christian Atsu"

As the events unfolded on Monday, tributes for the 31-year-old overflowed on Twitter. It is pertinent to mention that Atsu has had a successful career in club football in Premier League with Chelsea, Everton and Newcastle. The midfielder has also had notable spells in Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands and more. 

As per Goal, Hatay Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Lutfu Savas, honorary president of Hatyspor confirmed the development. “The search and rescue efforts for Atsu are unfortunately continuing,” he said. Here’s how the clubs reacted to the worrying development. 

Chelsea and Newcastle took to their official Twitter handle expressing concern about Atsu’s whereabouts. “The thoughts of everyone at Chelsea Football Club are with those affected by the earthquake in Turkey and Syria. We're praying for you, Christian Atsu,” Chelsea said. At the same time, Newcastle shared a picture of Atsu and said, “Praying for some positive news, @ChristianAtsu20”.

Several thousand people were left homeless in Turkey and Syria due to the earthquakes on Monday. The earthquake had brutal effects in the Turkish city of Gaziantep, which is 33 kilometers away from the epicenter. As reported by the Associated Press, over 4000 people have been killed across a wide region due to the earthquake,