 Zheng withChina at the2019 AFC Asian Cup | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1980-08-20)20 August 1980 (age 45) | ||
| Place of birth | Shenyang,Liaoning, China | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1990–2000 | Liaoning FC | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1998–2000 | Liaoning FC | 4 | (0) |
| 2001–2004 | Shenzhen Jianlibao | 82 | (13) |
| 2005–2007 | Shandong Luneng Taishan | 45 | (31) |
| 2007 | →Charlton Athletic (loan) | 12 | (1) |
| 2007–2009 | Charlton Athletic | 55 | (8) |
| 2009–2010 | Celtic | 16 | (1) |
| 2010–2022 | Guangzhou FC | 226 | (15) |
| Total | 440 | (69) | |
| International career | |||
| 2008 | China U23 | 2 | (0) |
| 2002–2019 | China | 108 | (15) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2019 | Guangzhou Evergrande (caretaker) | ||
| 2021 | Guangzhou FC (caretaker) | ||
| 2022–2023 | Guangzhou FC | ||
| 2023–2025 | China (assistant) | ||
Medal record | |||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
| Zheng Zhi | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simplified Chinese | 郑智 | ||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 鄭智 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Zheng Zhi (Chinese:郑智;pinyin:Zhèng Zhì; born 20 August 1980) is aChinese professionalfootball manager and former player. As a player, Zheng played most of his career forChinese Super League clubGuangzhou FC, becoming their captain and serving also as their caretaker manager in two stints.
After starting his career as adefender, Zheng was later moved into acentral midfield role by then head coachZhu Guanghu atShenzhen Jianlibao and experienced immediate success there by winning the 2004 league title with the club. A move toShandong Luneng Taishan saw a prolific goal scoring period in his career and he soon became the captain of theChinese national team, which then led to moves toCharlton Athletic andCeltic. He moved back to China in 2010 and joined what was then Guangzhou Evergrande, making over 300 appearances as captain while helping the club win all major trophies a Chinese club could compete for, includingChinese Super League for a record eight times and theAFC Champions League twice, the only Chinese club to have ever won the continental title.
Zheng Zhi started his football career in 1990 playing for various Liaoning youth academies before playing forLiaoning Liaoqing in 1998 in theChina League Two, starting out playing as a defender.[2] In 2000, Liaoning Youth were involved in a legal battle betweenYixing Industrial Co., Ltd. and Liaoning Sports School for the ownership of the club that saw all their assets frozen, including player transfer rights. This saw Zheng spend a year without playing professional football. In 2001, he was loaned to top-tier clubShenzhen Jianlibao who were coached by then managerZhu Guanghu, his former manager during his time with theChinese under-23 national team. He transferred to the club in November 2001 for a fee of ¥3.5 million.[3] While he was initially deployed as a defender, he shifted into a more of a playmaker role and aided Shenzhen to the top tier title for the first time in the club's history. In January 2005, Zheng transferred to fellowChinese Super League sideShandong Luneng Taishan for a transfer fee of ¥9.5 million.[4]
On 29 December 2006, Zheng was loaned out toPremier League sideCharlton Athletic until the end of the season with an option to buy. He had been on trial with the club in November 2006. He made his debut for the club on 10 February 2007 in a 2–0 loss againstManchester United, coming on as a substitute forAmdy Faye. He scored his first goal on 18 March 2007 in a 2–0 win againstNewcastle United.[5]
Zheng returned toShandong Luneng Taishan at the end of the 2006–07 season under the terms of his loan deal. He played once more for the club in a 6–1 loss againstBeijing Guoan before he returned to Charlton on a permanent deal in August 2007. He joined for a fee of £2 million and signed a two-year contract with the club.[6] He scored a total of seven league goals in the 2007–08 season; however, he was less effective in the second half of the season as a result of fatigue.[7]
In the summer of 2008, Zheng was heavily linked with a transfer toWest Bromwich Albion. Although Charlton were in negotiations with the club up to the end of the transfer window, the transfer failed to materialise.[8] On 8 July 2009, Zheng left Charlton after failing to agree a new contract with the club following its relegation toLeague One.[9]
On 1 September 2009, Zheng transferred toScottish Premier League sideCeltic, signing a two-year contract and becoming the second Chinese footballer to sign for the club afterDu Wei.[10] Then managerTony Mowbray affirmed his long held admiration for Zheng and expressed his delight at the signing.[11] Zheng was unable to play for the club in the group stage of the2009–10 UEFA Europa League afterUEFA confirmed that he was not registered in time.[12] He made his debut for the club on 4 October 2009 in a 2–1 loss againstRangers, winning a penalty.[13] He scored his first goal for the club on 8 May 2010 in a 2–1 win againstHeart of Midlothian.[14][15] He was released by the club at the end of the 2009–10 season after failing to agree to a new contract.[16]
On 28 June 2010, Zheng joinedChina League One sideGuangzhou Evergrande on a free transfer.[17] He made his debut for the club on 17 July 2010 in a 1–1 draw againstHubei Luyin. He scored first goal for the club 21 July 2010 in a 10–0 win againstNanjing Yoyo. In the 2010 season, Zheng scored five goals in 11 appearances as Guangzhou finished first place in the second division and won promotion back to the top tier.
After promotion to theChinese Super League, Zheng took over as captain of the club as former captainLi Zhihai transferred toGuangdong Sunray Cave. Zheng scored five times in 25 appearances during the 2011 season as Guangzhou won the top tier title for the first time in the club's history, giving Zheng his third league title with three clubs. In the 2012 season, the club won the domestic double by winning the league title and theChinese FA Cup; and in the2013 season, won a third consecutive league title. In November 2013, Zheng captained Guangzhou to victory in the2013 AFC Champions League Final as the club became the first Chinese club ever to win theAFC Champions League, and Zheng Zhi played the full game of the final, lifting the silverware as the captain.[18] On 26 November 2013, Zheng was named theAsian Footballer of the Year by theAsian Football Confederation, becoming the second Chinese footballer to win the award afterFan Zhiyi in 2001.[19]
On 27 October 2019, Zheng became the caretaker of the club when managerFabio Cannavaro was temporarily relieved of his position and sent to corporate culture training until 3 November 2019.[20][21]
On 5 December 2020, upon the club's elimination from the2020 AFC Champions League group stage, Zheng was appointed general manager of the club.[22]
Zheng joined theChinese under-23 national team as the only player called up from the third tier. He made his debut for theChinese national team on 7 December 2002 in a 3–1 win againstSyria.[23] He scored his first international goal on 29 January 2004 in a 1–0 win againstMacedonia.[24] AfterZhu Guanghu took over as the manager in 2005, he was shifted into centre midfield and cemented his spot as the national team's first choice midfielder. Zheng captained the under-23 national team that competed at the2008 Summer Olympics.[25] UnderGao Hongbo's management, Zheng was appointed captain of the national team. In an interview on 3 August 2016, Zheng said, "This is the last time I will be in the final stage of FIFA World Cup qualification," indicating that after the2018 FIFA World Cup, he would retire from the national team.[26] On 2 June 2018, Zheng won his100th cap for China in a 2–0 win againstThailand, making him the fourth Chinese footballer to win 100 caps.[27]
On 16 June 2023, the Chinese FA held a retirement ceremony for Zheng prior to the national team's 4-0 win againstMyanmar in Dalian. Zheng eventually played 108 games for China and scored 15 goals.[28]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Liaoning | 1998 | China League Two | – | – | – | – | ||||||||
| 1999 | 4 | 0 | – | – | – | – | 4 | 0 | ||||||
| 2000 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | – | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| Total | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Shenzhen Jianlibao | 2001 | Chinese Jia-A League | 23 | 2 | 3 | 0 | – | – | – | 26 | 2 | |||
| 2002 | 27 | 6 | 2 | 0 | – | – | – | 29 | 6 | |||||
| 2003 | 16 | 3 | 3 | 0 | – | – | – | 19 | 3 | |||||
| 2004 | Chinese Super League | 16 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 1 | – | – | 22 | 7 | |||
| Total | 82 | 13 | 12 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 96 | 18 | ||
| Shandong Luneng Taishan | 2005 | Chinese Super League | 18 | 10 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 5 | – | 32 | 21 | |
| 2006 | 26 | 21 | 6 | 1 | – | – | – | 32 | 22 | |||||
| 2007 | 1 | 0 | – | – | – | 3[a] | 2 | 4 | 2 | |||||
| Total | 45 | 31 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 68 | 45 | ||
| Charlton Athletic (loan) | 2006–07 | Premier League | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 12 | 1 | ||
| Charlton Athletic | 2007–08 | Championship | 42 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | – | – | 45 | 9 | ||
| 2008–09 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 13 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 67 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 70 | 11 | ||
| Celtic | 2009–10 | Scottish Premier League | 16 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 19 | 1 | |
| Guangzhou FC | 2010 | China League One | 11 | 5 | – | – | – | – | 11 | 5 | ||||
| 2011 | Chinese Super League | 25 | 5 | 2 | 0 | – | – | – | 27 | 5 | ||||
| 2012 | 24 | 1 | 3 | 1 | – | 9 | 0 | 0[b] | 0 | 36 | 2 | |||
| 2013 | 24 | 2 | 4 | 0 | – | 14 | 1 | 4[c] | 0 | 46 | 3 | |||
| 2014 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 8 | 0 | 0[b] | 0 | 28 | 0 | |||
| 2015 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | 13 | 1 | 4[c] | 0 | 39 | 2 | |||
| 2016 | 26 | 1 | 8 | 0 | – | 5 | 0 | 1[b] | 0 | 40 | 1 | |||
| 2017 | 17 | 0 | 1 | 1 | – | 10 | 0 | 1[b] | 0 | 29 | 1 | |||
| 2018 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 4 | 0 | 0[b] | 0 | 21 | 0 | |||
| 2019 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 8 | 0 | – | 25 | 0 | ||||
| 2020 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | – | 13 | 0 | ||||
| 2021 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | – | 11 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 226 | 15 | 19 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 71 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 326 | 19 | ||
| Career total | 440 | 69 | 45 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 77 | 7 | 13 | 2 | 583 | 94 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | 2002 | 3 | 0 |
| 2003 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2004 | 21 | 9 | |
| 2005 | 3 | 1 | |
| 2006 | 5 | 1 | |
| 2007 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2008 | 6 | 1 | |
| 2009 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2010 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2011 | 10 | 1 | |
| 2012 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2013 | 11 | 0 | |
| 2014 | 5 | 2 | |
| 2015 | 12 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 4 | 0 | |
| Total | 108 | 15 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 29 January 2004 | Suzhou Sports Center,Suzhou, China |  North Macedonia | 1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 2 | 7 February 2004 | Shenzhen Stadium,Shenzhen, China |  Finland | 2–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 3 | 17 March 2004 | Huangpu Sports Center,Guangzhou, China |  Myanmar | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 4 | 1 June 2004 | TEDA Football Stadium,Tianjin, China |  Hungary | 2–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 5 | 10 July 2004 | Hohhot People's Stadium,Hohhot, China |  United Arab Emirates | 1–2 | 2–2 | Friendly |
| 6 | 2–2 | |||||
| 7 | 17 July 2004 | Workers Stadium,Beijing, China |  Bahrain | 1–1 | 2–2 | 2004 AFC Asian Cup |
| 8 | 30 July 2004 | Workers Stadium, Beijing, China |  Iraq | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2004 AFC Asian Cup |
| 9 | 3–0 | |||||
| 10 | 22 June 2005 | Tianhe Stadium, Guangzhou, China |  Costa Rica | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 11 | 7 June 2006 | Stade Geoffroy-Guichard,Saint-Étienne, France |  France | 1–1 | 1–3 | Friendly |
| 12 | 6 February 2008 | Al-Rashid Stadium,Dubai, United Arab Emirates |  Iraq | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier |
| 13 | 2 September 2011 | Tuodong Stadium,Kunming, China |  Singapore | 1–1 | 2–1 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifier |
| 14 | 14 October 2014 | Helong Stadium,Changsha, China |  Paraguay | 1–0 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 15 | 14 November 2014 | Jiangxi Olympic Sports Center,Nanchang, China |  New Zealand | 1–0 | 1–1 | Friendly |
Shenzhen Jianlibao
Shandong Luneng Taishan
Guangzhou FC
Individual
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | China national football team captain 2006–2008 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Guangzhou F.C. captain 2011–2022 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | China national football team captain 2011 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | China national football team captain 2012–2019 | Succeeded by |
Awards | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||
