Former Newcastle winger Christian Atsu is still missing after the earthquake in Turkey despite earlier reports that he has been rescued. Following the huge earthquakes that devastated parts of Turkey and neighboring Syria on Monday, Volkan Demirel, director at Atsu’s club Hatayspor, told Reuters on Wednesday that the player had still not been found. Atsu had been announced as having been pulled from the rubble and taken to the hospital. Atsu is still being sought after, Demirel added. Christian Atsu spent nearly ten years at Chelsea and Newcastle United before signing with Turkish Super Lig team Hatayspor in September 2022.
After teammates and staff members of the club’s technical department were said to have been extricated from the rubble, Atsu went missing. A 7.8-magnitude earthquake, followed by a 7.5-magnitude one, struck southern Turkey and northern Syria early on Monday morning, killing more than 10,000 people. After joining Newcastle on loan from Chelsea for the 2017 season and eventually making a permanent transfer, Atsu was a part of the club that earned promotion back to the Premier League. He also briefly served on a short basis at Everton and Bournemouth. Atsu left St James’ Park in the summer of 2021 after 121 appearances, scoring in injury time on Sunday to secure a 1-0 win over Kasimpasa.
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