{{short description|Chinese footballer (born 1988)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2024}} {{family name hatnote|Chen|lang=Chinese}} {{Infobox football biography | name = Chen Zhizhao <br/> 陈志钊 | image = Zizao2013.jpg | caption = Zhizhao in 2013 | fullname = Chen Zhizhao | height = 1.70 m | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1988|3|14|df=yes}} | birth_place = Panyu, Guangdong, China | currentclub = | clubnumber = | position = Attacking midfielder | youthyears1 = 2000–2003 | youthclubs1 = Guangzhou Yida Football School | youthyears2 = 2003–2006 | youthclubs2 = Shanghai Shenhua | years1 = 2007–2009 | clubs1 = Citizen | caps1 = 23 | goals1 = 2 | years2 = 2009–2013 | clubs2 = Shanghai Shenxin | caps2 = 48 | goals2 = 13 | years3 = 2012–2013 | clubs3 = → Corinthians (loan) | caps3 = 2 | goals3 = 0 | years4 = 2014–2015 | clubs4 = Beijing Guoan | caps4 = 35 | goals4 = 5 | years5 = 2016–2022 | clubs5 = Guangzhou R&F | caps5 = 123 | goals5 = 9 | nationalyears1 = 2017 | nationalteam1 = China B | nationalcaps1 = | nationalgoals1 = | pcupdate = 20 June 2023 | ntupdate = }} {{Infobox Chinese | t = 陳志釗 | s = 陈志钊 | p = Chén Zhìzhāo | mi = {{IPAc-cmn|ch|en|2|-|zhi|4|-|zh|ao|1|}} | j = Can4 Zi3-ciu1 | ci = {{IPAc-yue|c|an|4|-|z|i|3|-|c|iu|1|}} }}
'''Chen Zhizhao''' {{zh|s=陈志钊|p=Chén Zhìzhāo}}; born 14 March 1988), known as '''Zizao''' in Brazil, is a Chinese former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.
In his career he represented Citizen before joining second tier club Nanchang Hengyuan where he gained promotion with them and then became the team's top goalscorer in the following season as he helped them remain within the top tier. He would go on to have a brief spell with Brazilian team Corinthians before returning to China with Beijing Guoan. He would spend seven seasons at Guangzhou R&F in the Chinese Super League before ending his career.
==Club career== Chen Zhizhao started his football career playing for Shanghai Shenhua's youth academy; however, he was unable to break into their first team. He then transferred to Hong Kong First Division League side Citizen AA at the beginning of the 2007-08 league season where he would make his debut for the club against Lanwa Redbull in the first game of the season in a 0-0 draw.<ref>[http://www.hkfa.com/en/match_result.php?match_date=2007-09-09&match_id=2688#2688 Match Results: 2007-09-09] at hkfa.com Retrieved 2012-07-17</ref> He quickly established himself within the team and would play in 13 league games and see Citizen come second within the league. Throughout the season he would also play in all of Citizen's cup games and would score his first goal against Eastern AA on 24 November 2007 in a Hong Kong Senior Shield game that Citizen lose 3-1.<ref>[http://www.hkfa.com/en/match_result.php?match_date=2007-11-24&match_id=2963#2963 Match Results: 2007-11-24] at hkfa.com Retrieved 2012-07-17</ref> His following goals would come in the Hong Kong FA Cup where he scored against Eastern AA on 10 May 2008 in a semifinal game that saw them win 1-0.<ref>[http://www.hkfa.com/en/match_result.php?match_date=2008-05-10&match_id=3908#3908 Match Results: 2008-05-10] at hkfa.com Retrieved 2012-07-17</ref> This was then followed by a goal in the final of the FA Cup win against Wofoo Tai Po on 18 May 2008 that saw Citizen win 2-0.<ref name="Match Results: 2008-05-18">[http://www.hkfa.com/en/match_result.php?match_date=2008-05-18&match_id=3922#3922 Match Results: 2008-05-18] at hkfa.com Retrieved 2012-07-17</ref>
Chen moved back to mainland China and signed a five-year contract with Nanchang Hengyuan (now known as Shanghai Shenxin) on 26 February 2009.<ref name="Nanchang contract">[http://www.chinanews.com/ty/2011/06-18/3120431.shtml 陈志钊身陷与南昌队“合同监” 想转会葡甲球队] at chinanews.com 2011-06-18 Retrieved 2012-07-17 {{in lang|zh}}</ref> He scored three goals as Nanchang finished second in the China League One and won promotion to the Chinese Super League for the first time. He scored ten goals and assisted eight times in thirty appearances which secured Nanchang's stay in the top flight for the next season.
Chen was linked with Liga de Honra side C.D. Trofense in January 2011. Trofense was interested with Chen, but Nanchang blocked this transfer. According to Chen's contract with the club on 26 February 2009, if a non-Chinese football club provided a bid of around €200,000 for him before 26 February 2011, then Nanchang would accept the transfer without any condition.<ref name="Nanchang contract"/> However, Nanchang insisted that €200,000 was provided by Chen's agency instead of the Portuguese club; besides, in the new contract which signed in early 2010, there were no related contract terms, so they had enough reasons to block this transfer.<ref>[http://sports.163.com/11/0218/07/6T5JERJ000051C89.html 揭秘陈志钊留洋失败始末 不回南昌或三年无球踢] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120506171940/http://sports.163.com/11/0218/07/6T5JERJ000051C89.html |date=2012-05-06 }} at sports.163.com 2011-02-18 Retrieved 2012-07-17 {{in lang|zh}}</ref><ref>[http://soccer.sina.com.hk/cgi-bin/nw/show.cgi/88/2/1/2116381/1.html 陳志釗本賽季留洋夢碎] at soccer.sina.com.hk 2011-03-11 Retrieved 2012-07-17 {{in lang|zh}}</ref> Chen refused to return to the club after this incident.<ref>[http://big5.news365.com.cn:82/gate/big5/www.news365.com.cn/xwzx/tyxw/201102/t20110224_2967523.htm 陳志釗下定決心不回頭 仲裁失敗也不回南昌] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120407105709/http://big5.news365.com.cn:82/gate/big5/www.news365.com.cn/xwzx/tyxw/201102/t20110224_2967523.htm |date=April 7, 2012 }} at Retrieved 2012-07-17 {{in lang|zh}}</ref> He didn't make any appearances for the club in the 2011 season and instead played for Panyu Pearl, a futsal team in his hometown.
In February 2012, Chen was loaned to Campeonato Brasileiro Série A side Corinthians until 31 December 2013.<ref>[http://www.corinthians.com.br/portal/noticias/2012/02/28/10h59-id14347-zizao+e+o+novo+reforco+do+corinthians.shtml#.T00Zt4ePWSQ "Zizao" é o novo reforço do Corinthians] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140106200513/http://www.corinthians.com.br/portal/noticias/2012/02/28/10h59-id14347-zizao%2Be%2Bo%2Bnovo%2Breforco%2Bdo%2Bcorinthians.shtml |date=2014-01-06 }} at corinthians.com.br 28/02/12 Retrieved 2012-07-17 {{in lang|pt}}</ref> He made his debut for Corinthians in a 2–0 defeat against Cruzeiro on 17 October 2012, coming on for Welder at the 80th minute. Chen made his first start for the club on 20 January 2013, assisting the first goal in a 1-1 draw against Paulista. On 11 March 2013, Chen was called up to the Chinese national team by then manager José Antonio Camacho to be a part of the squad that would face Iraq during 2015 AFC Asian Cup qualification.<ref>[http://esporte.uol.com.br/futebol/ultimas-noticias/2013/03/11/sem-jogar-pelo-corinthians-zizao-e-convocado-para-amistoso-da-selecao-chinesa.htm ''Sem jogar pelo Corinthians, Zizao é convocado para amistoso da seleção chinesa'']</ref> He returned to his parent club Shanghai Shenxin after the 2013 season.
On 28 February 2014, Chen transferred to fellow Chinese Super League side Beijing Guoan.<ref>[http://sports.sohu.com/20140228/n395830085.shtml 国安正式宣布陈志钊加盟 签约3年身披23号球衣] at sports.sohu.com 2014-02-28 Retrieved 2014-02-28</ref> He received a ban of four matches at the beginning of 2014 season by Chinese Football Association for age falsification which he changed his age from 14 March 1988 to 14 March 1989.<ref>[http://sports.sina.com.cn/j/2014-03-23/23227081025.shtml 陈志钊及海归新星因改年龄已被执行停赛4场] at sports.sina.com 2014-03-23 Retrieved 2016-12-21</ref> He made his debut for the club on 24 March 2014 in a 2–0 win against Shanghai Greenland. He scored his first goal for the club on 27 April 2014 in a 1–0 win against Harbin Yiteng.
On 22 December 2015, Chen transferred to his hometown club Guangzhou R&F in the Chinese Super League.<ref>[http://sports.sohu.com/20151222/n432227084.shtml 广州富力官方宣布陈志钊加盟 国安飞翼签约五年] at sports.sohu.com 2015-12-22 Retrieved 2015-12-22</ref> On 4 March 2016, he made his debut in a 2–1 home defeat against Hebei China Fortune.<ref>[http://sports.sina.com.cn/china/j/2016-03-04/doc-ifxqaffy3619245.shtml 中超-热鸟建功罗森文染红 华夏2-1富力中超首胜] at sports.sina.com 2016-03-04 Retrieved 2017-05-12</ref> He scored his first goal for the club on 21 August 2016 by shooting the winner in the 87th minute against Chongqing Lifan, which gave Guangzhou R&F a 5–4 away win.<ref>[http://sports.sina.com.cn/china/j/2016-08-21/doc-ifxvcsrn8839218.shtml 中超-陈志钊绝杀肖智2球 进球大战富力5-4力帆] at sports.sina.com 2016-08-21 Retrieved 2017-05-12</ref> On 18 June 2017, Chen was involved in a collision during a league match with Shanghai SIPG.<ref>[http://sports.sohu.com/20170618/n497560904.shtml 双方爆发激烈冲突2将染红 富力1-1上港7轮不胜] at sohu.com 2017-06-18 Retrieved 2017-06-23 {{in lang|zh}}</ref> Although just being cautioned, he received a ban of 7 matches by the Chinese Football Association.<ref>[http://sports.sina.com.cn/china/j/2017-06-22/doc-ifyhmtcf2769053.shtml 陈志钊因死球推倒对手遭处罚:停赛7场+罚款3.5万] at sina.com 2017-06-22 Retrieved 2017-06-23 {{in lang|zh}}</ref> In September 2020 Chen made his 100th appearance for Guangzhou R&F.<ref>{{Cite web|title=【足协杯】后发制人，广州富力点球淘汰卫冕冠军|url=https://news.dayoo.com/sports/202009/19/140001_53571936.htm|access-date=7 December 2020}}</ref> On 2 February 2023 he would retire from professional football.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://sports.sina.cn/china/2023-02-02/detail-imyeierp4289966.d.html|title=广州城老将陈志钊正式退役 曾留洋巴甲豪门俱乐部|publisher=sports.sina.cn|date=2023-02-02|access-date=2023-02-02}}</ref>
==Career statistics== {{updated|31 December 2022}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sodasoccer.com/search/player/87/172588/826B2218CB7F31AB.shtml|script-title=zh:陈志钊|work=sodasoccer|language=zh|access-date=2016-11-02|archive-date=2018-11-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181112181655/http://www.sodasoccer.com/search/player/87/172588/826B2218CB7F31AB.shtml|url-status=dead}}</ref> {| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center" |+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competition |- !rowspan="2"|Club !rowspan="2"|Season !colspan="3"|League !colspan="2"|National Cup !colspan="2"|League Cup !colspan="2"|Continental !colspan="2"|Other !colspan="2"|Total |- !Division!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals |- |rowspan=3|Citizen AA |2007-08 |rowspan=2|HK First Division League |13||0||3||2||1||0||colspan="2"|-||1{{efn|name=HKSCS|Appearances in Hong Kong Senior Challenge Shield}}||1||18||3 |- |2008-09 |10||2||0||0||0||0||colspan="2"|-||2{{efn|name=HKSCS}}||0||12||2 |- !colspan="2"|'''Total''' !23!!2!!3!!2!!1!!0!!0!!0!!3!!1!!30!!5 |- |rowspan=4|Shanghai Shenxin |2009 |China League One |18||3||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||18||3 |- |2010 |rowspan=2|Chinese Super League |30||10||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||30||10 |- |2011 |0||0||0||0||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||0||0 |- !colspan="2"|'''Total''' !48!!13!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!48!!13 |- |rowspan=3|Corinthians |2012 |rowspan=2|Série A |1||0||0||0||colspan="2"|-||0||0||0{{efn|name=CP|Appearances in Campeonato Paulista}}||0||1||0 |- |2013 |1||0||0||0||colspan="2"|-||0||0||3{{efn|name=CP}}||0||4||0 |- !colspan="2"|'''Total''' !2!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!3!!0!!5!!0 |- |rowspan=3|Beijing Guoan |2014 |rowspan=2|Chinese Super League |21||4||3||0||colspan="2"|-||0||0||colspan="2"|-||24||4 |- |2015 |14||1||2||0||colspan="2"|-||4||0||colspan="2"|-||20||1 |- !colspan="2"|'''Total''' !35!!5!!5!!0!!0!!0!!4!!0!!0!!0!!44!!5 |- |rowspan=8|Guangzhou R&F |2016 |rowspan=7|Chinese Super League |17||1||4||0||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||21||1 |- |2017 |22||1||3||0||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||25||1 |- |2018 |25||3||6||0||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||31||3 |- |2019 |14||0||1||0||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||15||0 |- |2020 |14||2||2||0||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||16||2 |- |2021 |16||1||1||0||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||17||1 |- |2022 |15||1||2||0||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||17||1 |- !colspan="2"|'''Total''' !123||9||19||0||0||0||0||0||0||0||142||9 |- ! colspan=3 | Career total !231||29||27||2||1||0||4||0||6||1||269||32 |} {{notelist}}
==Honours==
'''Citizen AA''' *Hong Kong FA Cup: 2007–08
'''Corinthians''' *Campeonato Paulista: 2013
'''Individual''' * Hong Kong FA Cup Top goalscorer: 2007–08
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *[https://web.archive.org/web/20160303214246/http://www.hkfa.com/en/player_view.php?player_id=7224 Chen Zhizhao] at HKFA (archived) *[http://csldata.sports.sohu.com/player.php?regnum=MA49542 Player stats] at sohu.com * {{Soccerway|123794}} * [https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/186964/chen-zhizhao Chen Zhizhao] on ESPN
{{s-start-collapsible|header={{s-ach|aw}}}} {{succession box | title=Hong Kong FA Cup<br>Top Scorer<br>'''(with Giovane)''' | before=Tales Schütz | after=Chan Siu Ki | years=2007–08 }} {{s-end}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chen, Zhizhao}} Category:1988 births Category:Living people Category:Footballers from Guangzhou Category:Chinese men's footballers Category:Chinese expatriate men's footballers Category:Hong Kong First Division League players Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Hong Kong Category:Chinese expatriate sportspeople in Brazil Category:Chinese expatriate sportspeople in Hong Kong Category:Citizen AA players Category:Shanghai Shenxin F.C. players Category:Beijing Guoan F.C. players Category:Guangzhou City F.C. players Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Brazil Category:Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players Category:SC Corinthians Paulista players Category:Chinese Super League players Category:China League One players Category:21st-century Chinese sportsmen Category:Men's association football midfielders Category:Hong Kong League XI representative players Category:Chinese emigrants to Brazil