Former Premier League star Christian Atsu 'found alive' after earthquake in Turkey

The former Chelsea and Newcastle winger, now at Super Lig side Hatayspor, was claimed to be missing with a search and rescue operation underway following the disaster on Monday morning.

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According to Turkish news outlet Star, Atsu - along with club sporting director Taner Savut - were caught up in the natural disaster in Kahramanmaras, where Hatayspor are based.

They have stated that two players from Hatayspor - Burak Oksuz and Bertug Yildirim - were rescued from the rubble.

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And two members of the technical team - Ekrem Eksioglu and Osman Ates - also survived the wreckage with their health said to be good.

Portuguese outlet A Bola reported on Monday evening that Atsu has been 'found alive' but is in hospital with injuries to his right foot and with breathing difficulties.

The report adds that Atsu's teammates Onur Ergun and Burak Oksuz were also found alive by rescue teams and Portuguese Hatayspor players Ruben Ribeiro and Cape Verdean Ze Luís are safe. Meanwhile, Hatayspor defender Kerim Alici got out of the rubble himself.

There has not been any confirmation on Atsu's health or whereabouts from his club or from Turkish media.

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Ghana international Atsu joined Chelsea in 2013, where he was shipped off on loan spells to Everton and Bournemouth, along with Vitesse, Malaga and Newcastle.

The Magpies turned his temporary stay into a permanent switch in 2017 after Atsu helped the Toon win the Championship title.

He stayed at the club until 2021, before making the move to the Middle East where he then returned to Europe last year to link up with Hatayspor.

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Newcastle have taken to social media to state they hope Atsu is found alive and well, as they tweeted: "Praying for some positive news Christian Atsu."

Meanwhile, Chelsea tweeted: "We're praying for you, Christian Atsu."

Atsu had only scored his first goal for the club this weekend prior to the earthquake hitting in a 1-0 win over Kasimpasa.

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Turkish newspaper Haberturk have stated that Hatayspor midfielder Onur Ergun and club translator Emre have also not been reached.

Meanwhile Yeni Malatyaspor goalkeeper Ahmet Eyup Turkaslan is also missing.

The second-tier outfit released a statement on Instagram, where they said: "To the knowledge of the common.

"Our goalkeeper, Ahmet Eyup Turkaslan, is in the building that was damaged and destroyed in the earthquake.

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"'Search and rescue efforts continue. As of now, there has been no news from him yet."

As of yet, it is reported at least 3,500 people are feared to have died in the earthquake that struck the country at around 4am on Monday morning.

And experts have claimed that figure could rise to as high as 10,000 people after Turkey was hit by a 7.5 magnitude earthquake shortly after.