• Emotional wife, children invited to Newcastle, Liverpool tie
The remains of former Ghana international footballer, Christian Atsu, who died in a devastating earthquake in Turkey, were being flown home yesterday, the country’s foreign ministry said.
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Atsu, 31, was caught up in a 7.8-magnitude quake that rocked Turkey and Syria on February 6, killing more than 44,000 people in both countries.

There were initial reports the former Chelsea and Newcastle player had been rescued a day after the quake, but these turned out to be false and his body was found on Saturday.

“The remains will be accompanied by his family and Ghana’s ambassador to Turkey on a Turkish airlines flight and will arrive in Accra (Ghana’s capital) at 7:40 p.m. Sunday,” the foreign ministry said.

On Saturday, the ministry said that Atsu’s older brother and twin sister were present at the site of the rescue when his body was recovered.
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His widow, Marie-Claire Rupio and their three children were in the stands at St James’ Park in London on Saturday to join a tribute to the player before Newcastle’s Premier League match against Liverpool.

Atsu scored the last of his 33 career goals for Hatayspor in Turkey’s Super Lig on February 5, hours before the quake struck.

He previously played for his national team the Black Stars and Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo said, “football has lost one of its finest ambassadors, one who will be difficult to replace.”

On Saturday at St. James Park, a minute’s applause was observed ahead of Newcastle’s game against Liverpool after news of Atsu’s passing broke on Saturday morning.

The winger played 121 games for Newcastle during a five-year spell.

As Newcastle fans applauded their former hero, Marie-Claire was spotted fighting back tears and consoling her two sons. Liverpool fans joined in with the tribute by singing ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ to show support to those grieving Atsu’s passing.

Former Newcastle Manager, Rafa Benitez, was among the first to pay tribute to his former player.

Benitez said: “It’s really sad because he was a nice, nice, special person. He was a good professional. I don’t talk about if he’s a good player or not, he was a nice lad and a good player, but especially a really nice person. So a special person and you can see the pictures, always with a smile playing or not playing.”
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Newcastle winger Allan Saint-Maximin added: “It’s a really sad day for Newcastle and the players. Most of the players know him well – he was a great guy and we had a nice time with him. It’s very painful. Some things are difficult for me – I will never forget him.”

Several current Newcastle players played alongside Atsu at St James’ Park.

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has officially commiserated with the Ghana Football Association over Atsu’s demise in the tragic Turkey earthquake.
  
In a letter signed by the General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi, the NFF said it was devastated by the news about one of Ghana’s standout performers on the pitch, and prayed earnestly for God to comfort the family, friends, the GFA and the entire Ghanaian football family for his demise.
 
“The Nigeria Football Federation, and indeed, the Nigeria Football family has on Saturday, February 18, 2023 received with much sadness news of the death of Black Stars’ player Christian Atsu, who has reportedly been found dead in the rubble of the recent earthquake that ravaged Türkiye.
 
“Our collective grief knows no bounds for a highly dedicated professional who was one of the very best at his craft, a super patriot who served Ghana to the best of his abilities and a stellar talent of the beautiful game. We remember Atsu as that rare talent who was the overwhelming choice for Player of the Tournament at the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations finals in Equatorial Guinea, and also won the Goal of the Tournament award.

“His 65 caps and nine goals for the Black Stars make him one of the sterling individuals in Ghana’s international game in the past two decades. His sense of dedication to duty is underscored by his eye-catching 90th minute goal that won the game for his club, Hatayspor, in a Turkish league game less than 24 hours before the earthquake happened.

“We mourn a true Black Star who gave his all to the game, but we are consoled by the giant footprints he left in the sands of time, and pray that God Almighty will grant him eternal rest, and also grant his family, friends, the GFA and the Ghana Football family the fortitude to bear the loss.”
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