 On 30 January 2017, Pato transferred to Chinese club Tianjin Quanjian for a £15.5 million transfer fee to play under Italian coach Fabio Cannavaro.On 4 March 2017, Pato made his debut for Quanjian in a 2–0 loss to Guangzhou R&F, where he missed several chances for the newly promoted side.A week later he missed an 88th-minute penalty kick in a 1–1 draw with Shanghai Greenland Shenhua, denying Quanjian its first ever Chinese Super League win.