CHEICK TIOTE’S Chinese club said the cause of his death was still under investigation Tuesday after the Cote d’Ivoire international collapsed in training and died.

Tributes poured in for the former Newcastle United midfielder, who moved to China’s second-tier Beijing Enterprises in February after seven years in England’s northeast.

Beijing Enterprises described how Tiote, 30, “suddenly fainted” during training Monday and was rushed to the hospital, where he died.

The club’s general manager Yang Junsheng told reporters that authorities were still trying to determine the cause of death. “We will remember the spirit that he brought us and his soccer ideals,” Yang added.

As fellow players paid tribute to the popular, hard-tackling midfielder, a group of fans laid a bouquet of white flowers on the pitch at Beijing’s National Olympic Sports Center Stadium.

Cote d’Ivoire teammate Gervinho, who plays for Hebei China Fortune, described Tiote as a “warrior” and a “champion.”

Brazil’s Oscar, now at Shanghai SIPG after moving from Chelsea, tweeted: “Rest in peace, Cheick Tiote. My family prays for your family.”

Tiote was well known in English soccer circles after his stint with Newcastle, including six Premier League campaigns before its relegation last year.

He is perhaps best remembered for his crunching left-foot volley from 25 meters to secure a 4-4 draw with Arsenal in 2011.

Tiote was also part of the Cote d’Ivoire squad that delivered the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations after a 23-year drought.

Several soccer players have died in similar circumstances, including Cameroon’s Marc-Vivien Foe, who collapsed during a Confederations Cup match in 2003 and died from a previously undiagnosed heart condition.

Newcastle said in a statement that it was “devastated” about Tiote while Alan Pardew, who managed him at Newcastle, said he “loved” the player.

“From the moment I arrived at Newcastle, Cheick was a wonderful presence around the dressing room and his performances on the field often defied belief,” Pardew said in a statement.

(SD-Agencies)