The world woke up on Monday to the tragic news of the devastating earthquake that wreaked havoc in Turkey and Syria, with some of the best players and clubs taking to social media to share their prayers and condolences during this difficult time.

One player who made it onto the headlines due to this tragedy is Christian Atsu. The 31-year-old Ghaniain player, who used to ply his trade in the Premier League, was reportedly caught in the earthquake and was unaccounted for, sparking fears that he too had passed away alongside the thousands of other victims.

We are truly saddened to hear of the tragic events in Turkey and Syria.

Our thoughts are with all those who are affected.

— Arsenal (@Arsenal) February 7, 2023

FC Barcelona expresses its condolences to the family members and friends of all those who have lost their lives in the earthquake in Turkey and Syria and wishes a healthy recovery to all of the injured and those affected.

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) February 6, 2023

Terrible news coming out of Syria and Turkey. My condolences for the lives lost and I wish all those injured a full recovery.

— Mohamed Salah (@MoSalah) February 6, 2023

 

— Declan Rice (@_DeclanRice) February 6, 2023

Atsu, who played for Everton and Newcastle during his time in the English top flight, signed for Super Lig side Hatayspor late last year. Many members of the squad and technical staff were caught in this event but while the others were pulled out from the rubble, Christian and Hatayspor sporting director Taner Savut initially went unfound.

Fortunately, Tuesday brought a positive update regarding the winger. As revealed by Ghana's football association, Atsu had been successfully rescued from a collapsed building and is now recovering from his injuries.

Update: We've received some positive news that Christian Atsu has been successfully rescued from the rubble of the collapsed building and is receiving treatment.

Let's continue to pray for Christian

— Ghana Football Association (@ghanafaofficial) February 7, 2023

Hatayspor's vice president Mustafa Ozat corroborated this story, telling Radyo Gol (as per ESPN) that the player was rescued. Unfortunately, there is no positive update on the club's sporting director who is yet to be pulled from under the rubble.

"Christian Atsu was pulled out injured. Our sporting director, Taner Savut, is unfortunately still under the rubble," Ozat said.

While the latest info on Atsu is welcomed, it will do little to quell the devastation as over 5000 people have died in Turkey and Syria following this 7.8 magnitude earthquake. The infrastructure in the affected cities has been destroyed but the loss of life will forever be remembered.