Ghanaian International footballer Christian Atsu is yet to be found after a devastating earthquake struck Turkey and neighboring Syria on Monday, February 6.
In contrast to the wild jubilation that followed the initial report that the former Chelsea and Newcastle United winger had been rescued, the latest report from the 31-year-old’s club has said otherwise.
More than 11,000 casualties had been recorded in southern Turkey and northern Syria after a 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit them during the early hours of Monday morning.
The 31-year-old former Newcastle and Chelsea winger Christian Atsu was declared missing after the outbreak of the natural disaster.
The Ghanaian international winger Atsu was reported missing after his teammates and members of the Turkish club’s technical team had reportedly been pulled from the rubble.
Meanwhile, there had been reports that the Ghanaian star player had been rescued from the rubble but Turkey’s club, Hatayspor director has debunked the news.
Hatayspor director Volkan Demirel said on Wednesday, February 8 that the Ghanian has not been located.
Demirel said: “There is no information on his whereabouts yet, we don’t know where he is.”
“It’s not the case that he was pulled out or taken anywhere else.”
The director further revealed that the search for the Ghanaian Atsu is ongoing.
And according to Christian Atsu’s agent, the footballer’s whereabouts are still unknown, after he was reported that he was pulled out from the rubble of a building “with injuries” following the Turkey earthquakes.
The missing footballer’s agent, Nana Sekyere, also notified Ghana-based news outlet, Joy Sports that all his efforts to locate his client are yet to yield anything positive.
Sekyere said: “No club official or hospital staff have been able to confirm his presence in any hospital in Hatya or a neighboring country, we are still searching for him, so we are very concerned.
“It’s 24 hours since it was reported he’s alive, however, he has not been seen in any hospital.”
“I am speaking to everybody; I am in direct contact with everybody at Hatayspor, I am also in contact with the Ghana and British consulates in Turkey and the Turkish football association.”
Also, Ghana’s Ambassador to Turkey, Francisca Ashietey-Odunton, told radio station Joy FM that there was “confusion” on the 31-year-old whereabouts.
And this confusion surfaced from the initial report that Christian Atsu had been pulled from the rubble and sent to the hospital which later appeared to be misinformation.
Francisca said: “Yesterday (Tuesday), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs here informed me that they wanted to confirm if Christian Atsu had been found and rescued, and sent to a medical center,”
“However, in all the confusion – which is understandable under the circumstances [as you are rescued you are put in an ambulance and sent to the hospital] – they are not sure yet which particular hospital or health facility he has been sent to.”
“This morning again, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has assured me they are working feverishly to find out which facility he was sent to and will get back to me as soon as possible because I have been on them that I need to go and see him.”
The Ghana international winger joined Turkish Super Lig side Hatayspor from Saudi Arabian side Al-Raed in September 2022 after spending nearly a decade at Premier League teams, Chelsea and Newcastle United.
The 31-year-old Ghanaian star also had spells with Everton and Bournemouth.
Christian Atsu, who managed 65 caps for Ghana and joined Hatayspor in September after a season with Saudi Arabian team Al-Raed mostly had his transfer moves on loan deals.
