Li Gang
Encyclopedia
Li Gang is a Chinese football player who currently plays for Chengdu Blades
as a midfielder
in the Chinese Super League
where he is also their current captain.
, Dalian Saidelong in the second tier where he would go on to establish himself as a regular within the team while also seeing the club move to Shanghai
and rename themselves Shanghai United F.C.
until the 2004 league season when the club won promotion to the Chinese Super League
after coming second within the league. Li Gang would help establish himself and his team the following season when his team came 11th in the league. However at the beginning of the 2007 league season Shanghai United F.C. and Shanghai Shenhua
merged with Shanghai Shenhua keeping their name.
At Shanghai Shenhua Li Gang would make his debut on March 7, 2007 against Sydney FC
in the 2007 AFC Champions League
group game that saw Shanghai Shenhua lose 2-1. With the former Shanghai United coach Osvaldo Gimenez managing the team Li Gang would quickly established himself as a regular within the first team despite the significantly large squad and played in fifteen league games within the season as well as also winning the 2007 A3 Champions Cup
, which was a mini tournament held during the summer break sanctioned by the East Asian Football Federation
. At the beginning of the 2008 league season Wu Jingui
was already brought back as Shenhua's manager and despite the large the exist of players at the beginning of the season Li Gang lost favour within the Shanghai team and saw his playing time significantly limited to only five league appearances throughout the season.
on loan during the 2009 league season where he quickly established himself as a regular within the team and played in ten league games for the club. Before the start of the 2010 league season it was discovered that several years before Chengdu Blades had fixed several league games and were punished with relegation to the second tier. Despite this Li Gang would make his loan move permanent and would play in seventeen league games to help push the club to win premotion at the end of the 2010 league season when he aided the club to a runners-up position.
Chengdu Blades
Chengdu Blades F.C. is a professional football club based in Chengdu, PR China who currently plays in the 42,000 seater Chengdu Sports Centre in the Chinese Super league...
as a midfielder
Midfielder
A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...
in the Chinese Super League
Chinese Super League
The Chinese Football Association Super League , commonly known as Chinese Super League or CSL, currently known as the Pirelli Chinese Football Association Super League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest tier of professional association football in China, operating under the auspices of the...
where he is also their current captain.
Shanghai
Li Gang would start his career in 2002 with one of the local football clubs in DalianDalian
Dalian is a major city and seaport in the south of Liaoning province, Northeast China. It faces Shandong to the south, the Yellow Sea to the east and the Bohai Sea to the west and south. Holding sub-provincial administrative status, Dalian is the southernmost city of Northeast China and China's...
, Dalian Saidelong in the second tier where he would go on to establish himself as a regular within the team while also seeing the club move to Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
and rename themselves Shanghai United F.C.
Shanghai United F.C.
Shanghai United F.C was a football club that competed in the Chinese Super League. The club played at the Yuanshen Sports Centre Stadium in Shanghai and was owned by Zhu Jun, the owner of China's second-largest online gaming company The9 since 2005.In 2004, the team was based in Zhuhai and played...
until the 2004 league season when the club won promotion to the Chinese Super League
Chinese Super League
The Chinese Football Association Super League , commonly known as Chinese Super League or CSL, currently known as the Pirelli Chinese Football Association Super League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest tier of professional association football in China, operating under the auspices of the...
after coming second within the league. Li Gang would help establish himself and his team the following season when his team came 11th in the league. However at the beginning of the 2007 league season Shanghai United F.C. and Shanghai Shenhua
Shanghai Shenhua
Shanghai Shenhua is a professional Chinese football club currently playing in Chinese Super League. The club is currently owned by Zhu Jun , Shanghai SVA Group, SMEG and Huangpu Investment Ltd. . The current head coach is Dražen Besek...
merged with Shanghai Shenhua keeping their name.
At Shanghai Shenhua Li Gang would make his debut on March 7, 2007 against Sydney FC
Sydney FC
Sydney FC is a professional football club based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia and competes in the country's premier football competition, the A-League...
in the 2007 AFC Champions League
AFC Champions League
The AFC Champions League is the premier Asian club football competition hosted annually by Asian Football Confederation . The tournament is contested among the top thirty-two clubs from the top 10 Asian leagues, two of which must qualify through the playoffs...
group game that saw Shanghai Shenhua lose 2-1. With the former Shanghai United coach Osvaldo Gimenez managing the team Li Gang would quickly established himself as a regular within the first team despite the significantly large squad and played in fifteen league games within the season as well as also winning the 2007 A3 Champions Cup
A3 Champions Cup 2007
The fifth edition of the A3 Champions Cup took place between June 7 and June 13, 2007 at the Shandong Stadium in Jinan.- Participants : Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma - 2006 K-League champions. Urawa Red Diamonds - 2006 J. League champions. Shandong Luneng Taishan - 2006 Chinese Super League champions...
, which was a mini tournament held during the summer break sanctioned by the East Asian Football Federation
East Asian Football Federation
The East Asian Football Federation , founded on May 28, 2002, is an international governing body of association football in East Asia.-Member Associations:EAFF has 10 member associations...
. At the beginning of the 2008 league season Wu Jingui
Wu Jingui
Wu Jingui is a Chinese football manager. He is currently the manager of the Chinese Super League team, Zhejiang Lücheng.-Formative years and education:...
was already brought back as Shenhua's manager and despite the large the exist of players at the beginning of the season Li Gang lost favour within the Shanghai team and saw his playing time significantly limited to only five league appearances throughout the season.
Chengdu Blades
After losing his place within the Shenhua team Li Gang would join Chengdu BladesChengdu Blades
Chengdu Blades F.C. is a professional football club based in Chengdu, PR China who currently plays in the 42,000 seater Chengdu Sports Centre in the Chinese Super league...
on loan during the 2009 league season where he quickly established himself as a regular within the team and played in ten league games for the club. Before the start of the 2010 league season it was discovered that several years before Chengdu Blades had fixed several league games and were punished with relegation to the second tier. Despite this Li Gang would make his loan move permanent and would play in seventeen league games to help push the club to win premotion at the end of the 2010 league season when he aided the club to a runners-up position.
External links
- Player profile at Sodasoccer.com
- Player profile at Chengdu Blades website
- Player profile at Shanghai Shenhua website