Yan Zihao (; born 18 January 1995) is a Chinese

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who currently plays as a

left-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

left winger A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

for

Chinese Super League The Chinese Football Association Super League, commonly known as Chinese Super League or CSL, currently known as the China Ping An Chinese Football Association Super League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest tier of professional football in ...

side

Cangzhou Mighty Lions Cangzhou Mighty Lions Football Club () is a professional football club that currently participates in the Chinese Super League under licence from the Chinese Football Association (CFA). The team is based in Cangzhou, Hebei and their home stadium i ...

Club career

Yan Zihao was selected to go to football training camps held in Portugal to help in his youth development, in a scheme that was sponsored by the

Chinese Football Association The Chinese Football Association (CFA) is the governing body for association football, beach soccer and futsal in People's Republic of China (Mainland China). The CFA organizes the men's and women's national teams and administers the country's ...

. His time in Portugal would see him join the senior team teams of lower league sides

Cova da Piedade Cova da Piedade is a former civil parish in the municipality of Almada, Lisbon metropolitan area, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish Almada, Cova da Piedade, Pragal e Cacilhas. The population in 2011 was 19,904, in an area of ...

and

Torreense Sport Clube União Torreense is a Portuguese sports club, best known for its association football section, founded in Torres Vedras in 1917, as Sport União Torreense. History It participated six times in the Portuguese Liga (last in 1991–92 ...

. On 1 February 2016, Yan would return to China with second tier football club

Tianjin Quanjian Tianjin Tianhai F.C. (; ;) was a Chinese football club. The team was based in Tianjin. History 2006-2010: Formation and League Two On June 6, 2006 the Tianjin Binhai Holdings Limited company would form a new football team based in Hohhot called ...

for the start of the

2016 China League One The 2016 China League One () was the 13th season of the China League One, the second tier of the Chinese football league pyramid, since its establishment in 2004. The league's title sponsor is the e-commerce website 58.com. Teams A total of 16 ...

season. He would make his debut on 8 May 2016 in a league game against

Qingdao Jonoon Qingdao Hainiu Football Club (, known as Hai-niu or literally Sea Bull) is a professional Chinese football club that currently participates in the China League Two division under licence from the Chinese Football Association (CFA). The team is b ...

in a 3-2 victory where he came on as a substitute for Wang Jie. After the game he would start to become a regular within the team and help them win the division title and promotion to the top tier. The following season saw the club bring in experienced left-back

Mi Haolun Mi Haolun (; Xiao'erjing: ; born 10 January 1993) is a Chinese professional footballer who plays as a left-back for club Shaanxi Union. Club career After playing in the youth squad of Shandong Luneng Taishan, Mi started his football career in ...

, which saw Yan lose his place within the team and he was loaned out to third tier club Jiangsu Yancheng in the 2018 league season.

Career statistics

Honours

Club

Tianjin Quanjian F.C. Tianjin Tianhai F.C. (; ;) was a Chinese football club. The team was based in Tianjin. History 2006-2010: Formation and League Two On June 6, 2006 the Tianjin Binhai Holdings Limited company would form a new football team based in Hohhot called ...

China League One The Chinese Football Association China League (), also known as China League One or Chinese Jia League (中甲联赛), is the second level of professional football in China. Above League One is the Chinese Super League. Prior to the formation of ...

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Yan, Zihao 1995 births Living people Chinese footballers Chinese expatriate footballers China youth international footballers Association football defenders Campeonato de Portugal (league) players China League One players Chinese Super League players China League Two players U.D. Oliveirense players Sporting CP footballers C.D. Cova da Piedade players S.C.U. Torreense players Tianjin Tianhai F.C. players Qingdao F.C. players Chinese expatriate sportspeople in Portugal Expatriate footballers in Portugal