Just a few days after Jean-Jacques Kilama’s excellent performance as centre back against China, the 30-year-old Eastern SC player announced that he signed a 2-year-contract with Tianjin Songjiang. The ambitious side currently plays in the second tier (China League One) and has just been taken over by a new owner. Finishing 9th this season, Quanjian Natural Medicine are expected to pump a lot of money into the club to become worthy rivals of Tianjin Teda, who just escaped relegation from the Chinese Super League.
Born in Cameroon, Kilama arrived in Hong Kong in 2007, where he first played for Rangers and later for Sun Hei, before being signed by Eastern in 2014. Holding an HKSAR passport, he will not be counted as a foreign aid in China according to AFC regulations. Despite the new environment, Kilama might soon see a familiar face: Godfred Karikari is currently a striker for Beijing BG in the same division.
China League One has just finished its season, with the new campaign expected to start in spring 2016.
