Ghana international Mohammed Kudus celebrated his Ajax goal with a t-shirt revealing a tribute to Christian Atsu.
The Ajax forward breached FIFA extant rules after he scored Ajax’s fourth goal in a big win over Rotterdam.
Paying tributes to a fellow Ghanaian countryman Christian Atsu who died in Turkey earthquake, Kudus revealed a message underneath his Ajax shirt after he scored for the Dutch giants.
He folded up his main Ajax shirt to reveal an underwear with an inscription which reads, “R.I.P Atsu” as he took a run to the corner flag, showing off the inscription to the fans at the Stadium.
His Ajax teammates ran to him to celebrate the goal while also condoling him.
Mohammed Kudus’s gesture could perfectly be understood. He was an international team-mate with Atsu while on duty for Ghana although both players have not took into the pitch at the same time before.
Ajax posted a clip of Mohammed’s celebration on the club’s social media handle, paying their tributes as well.
It was another poignant footage which resonated with football fans, who took to the page to offer their condolences while also commending the referee for not booking the Ghana international for the goal celebration despite flouting FIFA extant rules.
A fan wrote,” Respect to Van Boekel for not punishing this beautiful action.”
Another wrote, “…that he wasn’t booked shows Humanity has won. Good show Kuku. Rest Well Atsu.”
Christian Atsu died in the aftermath of the 7.7 and 7.8 magnitude earthquake which struck Southeastern Turkey earlier this month.
Christian Atsu was found dead inside a rubble after the high-rise building in which he and his Hatayspor teammates were was brought to rubble by the earthquake.
Over 42,000 people have been confirmed dead following the disaster and Christian Atsu happened to be among the casualties.
There were reports he was found alive, but the report was debunked by his agent Mehmet, who later confirmed his death.
Following news of his demise, Chelsea, Newcastle, Everton, Porto, Bournemouth, and his other former clubs, including players have offered their condolences and payed tributes.
Belgium international and Chelsea loanee to AC Milan Romelu Lukaku took to his social media handle and shared a clip of him and Atsu during their days at Everton and wrote,
“Rest well brother. This one is a hard one to take. It was amazing to be around you. You’re humbleness and love for God. They way you work in training. The love you have for your family and kids. May God give all the strength to your kids and family. God bless your soul. Love you always.”
Kudus joined clubs, players and other well wishers around the globe to pay tributes to the former Chelsea star by taking to a football act reprimanded by FIFA Rules.
Surprisingly, the referee in the match, Pol van Boekel, demonstrated common sense and refused to book the player.
Players who remove their shirt are automatically shown a yellow card as per the official rulebook, however Van Boekel, ignored the statutory rule and instead offered an emotional support.
Speaking at full-time, Kudus demonstrated his respect for the referee, adding: ‘We have football rules but this is beyond football, this is about life and death.
‘The referee told me it’s not allowed (shirt removal) but he understands because this is a bigger situation than football. A big respect from me to the referee.’
Before his death, Christian Atsu scored a sensational stoppage-time free kick that saw Hatayspor defeat Kasimpasa by a lone goal.
The earthquake occured hours after the goal after the Ghanaian canceled his scheduled flight away from Turkey.
His body has been flown to Ghana as his family commence plans to conduct his funeral and lay him to rest.
