Tiote had a child with Zim lover

Sport
FORMER Newcastle United and Ivory Coast player Cheick Tiote (30), who collapsed and died last Monday while training with his Chinese club, had a child with UK-based Zimbabwean lover Nkosiphile Mpofu, also known as Nikki.

FORMER Newcastle United and Ivory Coast player Cheick Tiote (30), who collapsed and died last Monday while training with his Chinese club, had a child with UK-based Zimbabwean lover Nkosiphile Mpofu, also known as Nikki.

Agencies/Sports Reporter

Cheick Tiote and his Zimbabwean lover Nikki Mpofu
Cheick Tiote and his Zimbabwean lover Nikki Mpofu

Tiote’s young son last week paid a heartbreaking tribute to his late father by posing for a picture in a Newcastle United shirt with the words “RIP Daddy” printed on the back.

Three-year-old Rafael was born to the midfielder and partner Mpofu during Tiote’s six-and-a-half-year stay on Tyneside.

And following the tragic news of his dad’s passing last Monday, the youngster and his family visited St James’ Park to collect the special shirt.

The images of the child with his father have been widely shared on social media after they were posted on Tuesday, including by Rafael’s mum Nikki.

In two emotional tweets in the hours after news broke of Tiote’s death, she paid tribute to the former Ivory Coast international.

She wrote: “Just lost the love of my life. Rest in peace Cheiky.” and “What do I tell our son Cheiky? #RIPTiote.”

The affair with Nikki blew up in the UK media in September 2014 when the married Tiote was playing for Newcastle and living with wife Madah and their two children in a £1,5 million mansion in Ponteland.

The Ivory Coast international had reportedly gone off to his native Ivory Coast and married a second woman.

And Nikki, whose baby from a three-year affair with Tiote was then just one-year-old, was not best pleased.

Nikki, then aged 33, promptly ended the relationship, claiming that Tiote had promised to marry her too.

His agent also confirmed reports he had married for a second time.

Jean Musampa said: “I can say that he did get married and that it is his second marriage.

“This is nothing unusual. He is a Muslim.”

The 30-year-old passed away in China, where he had been playing for second division outfit Beijing Enterprises after collapsing during a training session.

He was rushed to hospital at 6pm local time on Monday but was pronounced dead at 7pm.

Tiote turned himself into a cult hero during his time at Newcastle, thanks in no small part to a stunning equaliser in a 4-4 draw with Arsenal.

He left in February for Asia after more than 150 appearances for the Magpies.

Tiote was part of the Ivory Coast squad that won the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations.

He began his professional career in Belgium with Anderlecht in 2005 before moving to FC Twente, where he made 86 appearances and won the Eredivisie league title in the 2009-10 season under English manager Steve McClaren.

Tiote, a defensive midfielder, then signed for Newcastle in 2010 for £3.5m. He joined Beijing Enterprises Group FC for an undisclosed fee in February 2017.