Chinese club Beijing Enterprises FC has today held a memorial service for former Ivory Coast and Newcastle footballer Cheick Tiote.

Family members as well as teammates past and present including compatriot Gervinho and ex-Newcastle striker Papiss Cissé paid their last respect to the Ivort Coast star who died in hospita last week after collapsing during a training season.

The 30 year old played in England between 2010 and 2017, will then be flown home to the Ivorian capital of Yamoussoukro.

“I lived some extraordinary moments with this man and today he’s gone,” Tiote’s former Newcastle team mate Papiss Cisse said at the memorial.

Chen Zhenting, a spokesperson for the fan club, told
BBC Chinese : “They came this morning in the rain to pay tribute to Mr Tiote.

“We are in pain and very, very sad to see him die at such a young age. There would definitely be a silent tribute.”

Tiote made more than 150 appearances for Newcastle, with his only goal for the club a memorable equaliser against Arsenal as his team battled back to draw 4-4 at St James’ Park in February 2011.

He was an African Nations Cup winner with the Ivory Coast in 2015 although he missed the final through injury, and he played in the 2010 and 21014 World Cups.

Additional Sources:Reuters