Zhang Aokai (Chinese: 张奥凯; pinyin: Zhāng Àokǎi; Mandarin pronunciation: [ʈʂáŋ âʊ kʰàɪ]; born 18 February 2000), original name Zhang OK (Chinese: 张OK),[1] is a Chinese footballer who plays as a left winger for Yanbian Longding.

Zhang Aokai
张奥凯
Personal information
Full name Zhang Aokai
Date of birth (2000-02-18) 18 February 2000 (age 24)
Place of birth Xianyang, Shaanxi, China
Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9+12 in)
Position(s) Left winger
Team information
Current team
Yanbian Longding
Youth career
2010–2012 Shaanxi Daqin
2012–2017 Guangzhou Evergrande
2017–2019 Espanyol
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016 Guangzhou Evergrande 1 (0)
2019–2020 Espanyol B 0 (0)
2019–2020Horta (loan) 2 (0)
2020Shijiazhuang Ever Bright (loan) 0 (0)
2021–2022 Cangzhou Mighty Lions 0 (0)
2022Jiangxi Dark Horse Junior (loan) 14 (4)
2023–2024 Shanghai Jiading Huilong 6 (0)
2024- Yanbian Longding 0 (0)
International career
2015 China U17 7 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 12:00, 31 December 2022 (UTC)

Club career

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Zhang Aokai joined Chinese Super League side Guangzhou Evergrande's youth academy from China League Two club Shaanxi Daqin in 2012.[2] He was promoted to Guangzhou's first team squad by manager Luiz Felipe Scolari in July 2016.[3] Zhang made his senior debut on 30 October 2016 in a 4–0 home win against Shandong Luneng, coming on for Zheng Zhi in the 85th minute and taking over the captaincy for the rest of the match,[4] making him the first player born in the new millennium to make an appearance in any of the Chinese professional leagues.[5]

Zhang was excluded from Guangzhou's first team squad for the 2017 season. He left the club and underwent a trial with La Liga side Espanyol in the summer of 2017.[6] He signed a professional contract with Espanyol and joined Juvenil A team on 19 July 2018.[7] On 26 September 2019 Espanyol confirmed, that Aokai had joined UA Horta on loan for the rest of the season.[8] On 29 July 2020 he returned to China with Shijiazhuang Ever Bright (now known as Cangzhou Mighty Lions) initially on loan before making the move permanent.[9]

Personal life

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Zhang Aokai's original name was Zhang OK; however, his given name violated the Name Registration Ordinance of the People's Republic of China; and thus, he could not apply for an identification card. Zhang's father changed his given name to Aokai, which shares a similar pronunciation with OK.[1]

Career statistics

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As of 31 December 2022.[10]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Guangzhou Evergrande 2016 Chinese Super League 1 0 0 0 0 0 0[a] 0 1 0
Espanyol B 2019–20 Segunda División B 0 0 - - - 0 0
Horta (loan) 2019–20 Tercera División 2 0 0 0 - - 2 0
Shijiazhuang Ever Bright (loan) 2020 Chinese Super League 0 0 0 0 - - 0 0
Cangzhou Mighty Lions 2021 Chinese Super League 0 0 0 0 - - 0 0
Jiangxi Dark Horse Junior (loan) 2022 China League Two 14 4 - - - 14 4
Career total 17 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 17 4
  1. ^ Appearance(s) in Chinese FA Super Cup

Honours

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Club

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Guangzhou Evergrande

References

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  1. ^ a b "恒大足校:张OK其实叫张奥凯 李开朗琪罗退学". Tencent (in Chinese). 20 September 2014. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
  2. ^ "恒大足校16岁小将进一队体验 他的名字叫"张OK"". Netease (in Chinese). 15 July 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
  3. ^ "16岁小将张奥凯进恒大一队 黄博文叔叔亲当陪练". Sohu (in Chinese). 15 July 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
  4. ^ "斯帅:张奥凯担中国足球责任 明年年轻人机会更多". Sina (in Chinese). 30 October 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
  5. ^ "恒大00后小将登场创三项纪录 接过郑智队长袖标". Sohu (in Chinese). 30 October 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
  6. ^ "张奥凯已抵达西班牙人俱乐部 能否加盟仍未定". Sina (in Chinese). 10 August 2017. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  7. ^ "Aokai Zhang, nuevo jugador del Juvenil A". RCD Espanyol (in Spanish). 19 July 2018. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  8. ^ Aokai, cedido a la UAT Horta, rcdespanyol.com, 26 September 2019
  9. ^ "国足00后小将张奥凯,16岁就登陆中超,交往外国女友后逐渐平庸". sohu.com. 7 February 2023. Retrieved 7 February 2023.
  10. ^ "张奥凯". sodasoccer.com. Retrieved 30 October 2016. Archived 2016-10-31 at the Wayback Machine
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