Gu Chao

Not to be confused with Gu Cao.

Gu Chao
顾超

Personal information
Full name	Gu Chao
Date of birth	(1989-08-20) 20 August 1989 (age 35)
Place of birth	Shanghai, China
Height	1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)
Position(s)	Goalkeeper
Youth career
2000–2006	Genbao Football Academy
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2006–2010	Shanghai East Asia	50	(0)
2011–2015	Hangzhou Greentown	78	(0)
2016–2020	Jiangsu Suning	115	(0)
2021–2022	Zhejiang Pro	53	(0)
International career^‡
2016	China	2	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 31 January 2023 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 6 September 2016

In this Chinese name, the family name is Gu.

Gu Chao (Chinese: 顾超; pinyin: Gù Chāo; born 20 August 1989) is a Chinese former professional footballer.

He was later banned from football-related activities in China for life over allegations of match-fixing and other forms of corruption.

Club career

Gu Chao joined the Genbao Football Academy in 2000 and was promoted to Shanghai East Asia's first team squad during the 2006 season. He played regularly as the starting goalkeeper and made an impression within the team as Shanghai won promotion to the second tier in the 2007 season.

On 15 March 2011, Gu transferred to Chinese Super League side Hangzhou Greentown for a fee of ¥2 million.^[1] On 6 July 2011, he made his debut for Hangzhou in a 1–1 away draw against Dalian Shide.^[2] He mainly played as the backup goalkeeper for Jiang Bo in the 2011 season and 2012 season. However, it was not until the 2014 season when Gu cemented his role as the team's starting goalkeeper.

On 31 December 2015, Gu moved to Chinese Super League side Jiangsu Suning on a five-year contract with a transfer fee of ¥50 million,^[3] which being above Wang Dalei's transfer record fee of ¥30 million, made him the most expensive goalkeeper in China.^[4] He played as a back-up for Zhang Sipeng at the beginning of the season. Gu made his debut for Jiangsu on 9 April 2016 in a 1–0 win against Henan Jianye. He became the first choice goalkeeper of the club after the match.^[5] At the end of the 2020 Chinese Super League he would repay the club by winning the league title with them.^[6] On 28 February 2021, the parent company of the club Suning Holdings Group announced that operations were going to cease immediately due to financial difficulties.^[7]

On 15 March 2021, Gu returned to Hangzhou by joining second tier club Zhejiang Pro on a free transfer.^[8] In his first season back he quickly established himself as a vital member of the team as the club gained promotion to the top tier at the end of the 2021 campaign.^[9]

On 10 September 2024, Chinese Football Association announced that Gu was banned from football-related activities in China for life for involving in match-fixing.^[10][11][12]

International career

Gu was called up to the senior China squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC third round against South Korea and Iran.^[13] Gu made his debut for the China on 6 September 2016 in a 0-0 draw against Iran, coming on as a substitute for injury Zeng Cheng in the 12th minute.^[14]

Career statistics

Statistics accurate as of match played 31 January 2023.^[15]

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
Shanghai East Asia	2006	China League Two			-		-		-
	2007				-		-		-
	2008	China League One	22	0	-		-		-		22	0
	2009		19	0	-		-		-		19	0
	2010		9	0	-		-		-		9	0
	Total		50	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	50	0
Hangzhou Greentown	2011	Chinese Super League	4	0	0	0	0	0	-		4	0
	2012		1	0	1	0	-		-		2	0
	2013		13	0	1	0	-		-		14	0
	2014		30	0	0	0	-		-		30	0
	2015		30	0	1	0	-		-		31	0
	Total		78	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	81	0
Jiangsu Suning	2016	Chinese Super League	25	0	7	0	2	0	-		34	0
	2017		20	0	2	0	1	0	-		23	0
	2018		30	0	4	0	-		-		34	0
	2019		22	0	0	0	-		-		22	0
	2020		18	0	3	0	-		-		21	0
	Total		115	0	16	0	3	0	0	0	131	0
Zhejiang Pro	2021	China League One	30	0	0	0	-		2[a]	0	32	0
	2022	Chinese Super League	23	0	1	0	-		-		24	0
	Total		53	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	54	0
Career total			296	0	20	0	3	0	2	0	321	0

1. Appearances in Promotion/Relegation Play-offs

Honours

Club

Shanghai East Asia

• China League Two: 2007

Jiangsu Suning

• Chinese Super League: 2020^[6]

References

1. 东亚门将顾超转会绿城 卖五主力徐根宝冲超目标不变 at sina.com.cn 2011-03-16 Retrieved 2013-08-20 (in Chinese)
2. 绿城6战5分掉队争冠集团 一套阵容何谈称霸中超 at sohu.com 2011-07-06 Retrieved 2013-08-20 (in Chinese)
3. 江苏官方宣布签约顾超 前绿城门将五年合约加盟 at sports.sohu.com 2015-12-31 Retrieved 2015-12-31 (in Chinese)
4. 江苏苏宁宣布顾超加盟 转会费打破3000万元纪录 at sports.sohu.com 2015-12-31 Retrieved 2016-01-05 (in Chinese)
5. 中超-吉翔凌空抽射绝杀 苏宁1-0建业积10分领跑 at sports.163.com 2016-04-09 Retrieved 2016-11-03 (in Chinese)
6. "中超-特谢拉造红牌+破门 苏宁2-1恒大夺中超首冠" (in Chinese). Sports.sina.com.cn. 12 November 2020. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
7. "Inter Milan doubt as Suning call time on Chinese champions Jiangsu FC". South China Morning Post. 28 February 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
8. "回归！官方：江苏队门将顾超加盟浙江队" (in Chinese). 163.com. 15 March 2021. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
9. "足球——中超附加赛：浙江平青岛 总分胜出升入中超" (in Chinese). sohu.com. 12 January 2022. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
10. "中国足球协会关于对有关涉案人员行业处罚情况的通报" (in Chinese). Chinese Football Association. 10 September 2024. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
11. "金敬道、顾超等43人被终身禁足！中国足协公布禁足大名单" (in Chinese). Dongqiudi. 10 September 2024. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
12. "China's Football Association bans 43 people for life after corruption investigation". AP News. 10 September 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
13. "CFA reveals names of China PR players competing in FIFA World Cup qualifiers". chinatopix.org. 26 July 2016. Archived from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
14. 世预赛-武磊失单刀伊朗逃点球 国足0-0平 at sports.sohu.com 2016-09-06 Retrieved 2016-09-06 (in Chinese)
15. 顾超 at sodasoccer Retrieved 2015-11-01 (in Chinese) Archived 2018-11-15 at the Wayback Machine

External links

• Gu Chao at National-Football-Teams.com
• Gu Chao at Soccerway