Newcastle and Liverpool hold minute's applause for Atsu after ex-Magpies winger found dead

The former Magpies player was a firm fan favourite with the Toon outfit having racked up 121 appearances between 2016-2021.

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It was confirmed on Saturday morning the Ghanaian's body was found 12 days after he went missing following the devastating earthquake.

Atsu made the move to the Super Lig in Turkey, where he had been playing for Hatayspor after returning to Europe after his spell in Saudi Arabia.

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He had scored his first goal for the club just hours before devastation struck in Turkey and Syria, which has claimed more than 40,000 lives.

Ahead of the Newcastle's clash against Liverpool, both sets of players and supporters held a minute's silence in his memory.

Atsu's wife Marie-Claire Rupio and their three children were in attendance for the match in Tyneside.

They were spotted looking visibly emotional as fans sung his name around the stadium.

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Fans continued to show show their respect to Atsu despite Newcastle's poor first half where they started in the worst possible fashion.

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Darwin Nunez broke the deadlock in the tenth minute after volleying home having being picked out by Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Cody Gakpo then followed up his goal against Everton by grabbing the Reds' second of the match seven minutes later.

And things went from bad to worse after Nick Pope was shown a straight red card, which will see him miss the Carabao Cup final against Manchester United next week.