The German outfit announced that the striker had rejoined the club on Saturday, yet Tianjin Quanjian insist he is still registered to them
Tianjin Quanjian are threatening to take legal action against Anthony Modeste and Cologne after the German club announced they had re-signed the striker.
Cologne released an official statement on Saturday to confirm Modeste, who had been training with their under-21 team, had rejoined on a contract spanning until 2023.
The 30-year-old initially left in July 2017 for a reported fee of €35 million (£31m/$40m), signing a deal scheduled to run until the end of 2020.