Hatayspor head coach, Volkan Demirel, has opened up about his last conversation with the late Ghanaian winger, Christian Atsu, just before he scored his final goal.
Demirel shared the details of their discussion, shedding light on Atsu's determination and contribution to the team.
“For two months he’d not played because of injury but in the week building up to the game he came to my office and said that he was ready to play,” says Demirel told the Athletic.
“I told him that’s good, but he wasn’t ready to start. In the last 10 minutes, we decided to put him on.
“In the last minute, we got a free-kick and I was telling him to cross it, but he told his teammates he was going to shoot, and he scored a beautiful free-kick.”
Tragically, Atsu became a victim of the devastating earthquakes that struck Turkey on February 6. He was trapped under the rubble for 12 days until he was found lifeless on February 18.
Atsu was buried in March at his hometown.