Eleven days after the earthquake that tore apart Turkey and Syria, devastating news linked to the world of sports was confirmed.
Footballer Christian Atsu, formerly of Chelsea, Málaga, and Newcastle United, is among tens of thousands of other victims after his body was found among the rubble left by the earthquake. This sad news was communicated by his agent in Turkey, Murat Uzunmehmet on Friday morning.
“Christian Atsu was found and had unfortunately passed away,” he said through a brief statement on social media.
“Atsu’s lifeless body was found under the rubble,” Uzunmehmet added when speaking with reporters in Hatay, where the player’s body was found. “Currently, more items are still being taken out. His phone was also found.”
The Ghanian had planned to depart from southern Turkey just hours before the earthquake struck, according to his club manager, but had decided to stay following scoring the winning goal on 5 February.
The disappearance of Atsu, who had been a member of the Turkish club Hatayspor, shocked the sports world.
The 31-year-old Ghanaian has been playing in the country after a long career that had taken him through several of the world’s top leagues.
After starring for Porto, he was snapped up by Chelsea and stayed with the London team for four seasons, being sent out on loan to various clubs including Málaga, with whom he came to play in the Spanish top flight. He featured in 12 games and scored 2 goals.
In addition to the club level, Atsu was heavily involved with the Ghana national team. He played 65 games for his country and scored nine goals, and was part of the team that was in the 2013 and 2015 African Cups, and also the 2014 World Cup.
