As night fell on February 6, a heavy message reached the world from the northern Syrian city of Jabalay: 45-year-old Syrian soccer legend Nadir Jouhdar and his son Taji were tragically killed in the Turkey-Syria earthquake. The former international footballer had a fierce encounter with China at the 1996 Asian Cup.
Turkey's border with Syria was hit hard by a 7.8-magnitude earthquake in successive days, and the two countries suffered an unprecedented catastrophe. Numerous athletes were lost in the quake.
The sad news came in a tidal wave that 45-year-old Nadir Jouhdar, a striker who played for the Syrian national team from 1995 to 1997 and took part in the 1996 Asian Cup, has passed away. He had a 12-year career with the West Asian club and was a goal-scoring efficiency. At the Asian Cup, Jouhedal wore the No. 16 shirt and fought tirelessly throughout the match to help Syria compete with the mighty China.
That year, with consecutive goals from Ma Mingyu, Gao Feng and Li Bing, China won the crucial match 3-0 to advance to the group stage, eventually squeezing out Syria and Uzbekistan on goal difference to advance with Japan. Jouhedal, on the other hand, left his mark on this classic clash. He also had a brief stint as a coach in the Lebanese league last year.
Against this backdrop, former Chelsea and Newcastle player Atsu, who now plays for Hattiesburg, has also caught the eye of the soccer world, as he added another goal in the current round of Turkish Super League matches. And news of relative stability came from Chinese players Wu Shaocong and Li Jiayue in Turkey. Li Jiayue revealed in a video that she has experienced aftershocks and blizzards and is now trying to seek safety. Let's all wish that all those who are in trouble will get through this safely.
