There were initially reports that Atsu had been rescued but Hatayspor director said on Wednesday the Ghanian has still not been located.

Volkan Demirel who is the director at Atsu's club Hatayspor mentioned that the location of Atsu remains unknown even though it was announced that he would been pulled from the rubble and taken to hospital on Monday.

"There is still no lead on Atsu's whereabouts as yet, we don't know where he is and it's not the case that he was pulled out or taken anywhere," said Demirel.

With the search for Atsu still ongoing, his agent Nana Sechere said that everyone is doing everything they can to locate the former Newcastle and Chelsea player.

"I can't confirm whether he is fine wherever he is or not, as you can imagine this continues to be a devastating time for his family," Sechere added.

With the death toll now peaking at 12 000 people confirmed dead, dozens of nations have offered aid to Turkey and Syria since the quake hit with freezing weather hampering emergency efforts.

The 31 year old Atsu played 107 games for Newcastle and had spells with Chelsea, Everton and Bournemouth in the English Premier League.

He also has 65 caps for Ghana representing his national side at the 2014 FIFA World Cup and two Africa Cup of Nations tournaments.

Atsu joined Hatayspor in September 2022 after a season with Saudi Arabian team Al-Raed.