He must have had a guardian angel. Ghanaian soccer player Christian Atsu (31) started his career in the youth department of Portuguese club FC Porte. Last September he moved to the Turkish club Hatayspor – that has now been his undoing. Because the night from Sunday to Monday, Turkey was shaken by a violent earthquake. At the time, Christian was in a building that was completely destroyed.
Nana Sechere, the 31-year-old’s agent, told the British magazine Mirror: “He lived in an 11-story building and was on the ninth floor.” He only returned to his apartment around 4 a.m. – 20 minutes before the earthquake started. “I didn’t know anything until 5 am when I got a call from a club employee asking me if I had heard from Christian .” It wasn’t until Tuesday morning, a day later, that he got the notification that Christian was in a hospital and doing well.
According to the football news magazine goal.com, Nana is said to have withdrawn his statement on Twitter. “Following the club’s announcement yesterday that Christian had been taken out alive, there is still no confirmation as to his whereabouts.” However, the Twitter account is not verified, which leaves open whether this information is true.