PLAYER SPOTLIGHT: John Obi Mikel - Who will join the Nigerian at Tianjin Teda?

by Graeme Jackson

Monday Jan 15, 2018. 10:00

With the 2018 Chinese Super League just a few weeks away, Nigerian star John Obi Mikel will be keeping a keen eye on which players will be joining him at Tianjin Teda.

The Super Eagles midfielder joined the CSL club just under a year ago and went on to enjoy a relatively successful first season in the Far East.

Injuries limited Mikel’s playing time, but he still managed a strong hand in Tianjin’s campaign which ended with them avoiding relegation from the Chinese top flight.

The influx of money into Chinese football has allowed clubs the financial muscle to attract big-name players such as Mikel, and he will be hoping Tianjin aren’t stingy in improving their player base.

However, new rules in regard to foreign players have been imposed on the CSL. While five non-Chinese nationals were allowed to be registered at any one time per team last year, that is down to just four for 2018.

In addition, over the course of the season, six non-Chinese players can be registered, as opposed to seven last year, while the number of foreign imports on the pitch must not exceed the amount of domestic U-23 players, with a maximum of three playing at any one time.

Finally, teams can register one naturalised non-native outfield player from either Hong Kong, Taiwan or Macau as a domestic squad member.