Johannesburg - Turkish club Yeni Malatyaspor described Eyup Turkaslan as a ‘beautiful person’ after he succumbed to earthquake related injuries on Tuesday.
On Monday morning, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake affected Turkey and Syria, taking the death toll to at least 9 600 casualties as of Wednesday morning.
One of those casualties was Malatyaspor's goalkeeper Turkaslan who passed away after one of the high buildings in Turkey collapsed with him inside.
“Our goalkeeper, Ahmet Eyup Turkaslan, lost his life after being under the collapse of the earthquake," the club wrote on social media.
"Rest in peace. We will not forget you, beautiful person,” the club said about Turkaslan, who’s survived by his wife Kubra, who escaped the rubble.
The 28-year-old made 94 career appearances across numerous stints in Turkey, while he had played only two games for Malatyaspor this season.
Turkaslan is the second notable footballer to be involved in the earthquake rubble following reports that Christian Atsu was also affected by the crisis.
However, the Ghanaian footballer escaped the crisis alive, having been admitted to a local hospital after being found near the epicenter in Hatay.
Plying his trade at Turkish Super Lig side Hatayspor after joining in September, Atsu has had a decorated career, representing Ghana in 60 matches.
The 31-year-old has also had spells in the English Premier League, playing for Newcastle United, while he played for Chelsea early in his promising career.
Meanwhile, all professional football matches in Turkey have been postponed indefinitely amid the ongoing crisis that has disrupted the country.
@MihlaliBaleka