There have been many important goalkeepers in the history of the Chinese Super League, but few can lay claim to having the most clean sheets in the league’s 20+ year history.
Often, it is the top goal scorers or playmakers who capture all the headlines in football, leaving the people between the posts isolated and at times disregarded.
But when a team has a strong goalkeeper, it is known and their value is on show for all to see.
Developing talented goalkeepers is crucial to Chinese football, as teams may only have Chinese nationals registered to play the position.
With that in mind, who are the top five players with the most clean sheets in the history of the Chinese Super League?
5. Liu Dianzuo (102)
To put into perspective how good the goalkeepers who are on this list are, the fifth-best of those has over 100 cleans sheets to his name, so far.
Liu Dianzuo has been a mainstay in the top tier of Chinese football, and he continues to play a key part in Chengdu Rongcheng’s 2025 campaign.
The 35-year-old from Dalian, Liaoning Province, began his career with his home city club Dalian Yiteng, playing in China League One and Two before moving to Chinese Super League club Shanghai Shenxin in 2011.
He enjoyed four seasons in the top tier in China’s largest city before moving to Guangzhou R&F in 2015. He spent just one city with the Blue side of Guangzhou before joining the then-behemoth Guangzhou Evergrande, where he initially played second fiddle to the well-established Zeng Cheng.
He became the club’s preferred starter by 2019, with three league medals, a Chinese FA Cup and three Chinese Super Cups to his name before jumping the sinking ship for Wuhan Three Towns.
He won the league again with the big-spending Wuhan, playing three seasons for the club before moving to Chengdu prior to the start of this season.
In 290 Chinese Super League appearances, Liu Dianzuo kept clean sheets in 102 matches and comes in just behind the man he backed up in Guangzhou.
4. Zeng Cheng (110)
Zeng Cheng was one of the most consistent goalkeepers in China during his time with Guangzhou Evergrande, a club which he won six league titles, two AFC Champions Leagues, one Chinese FA Cup and three Chinese Super Cups.
By the time he joined Guangzhou in 2013, Zeng Cheng had already racked up 126 top tier appearances with Wuhan Guanggu and Henan Jianye and already had 16 cap for the China National Team.
Adding the international player helped Guangzhou defend well against the rest of the league through their period of dominance, before his departure after the 2019 season saw him join Shanghai Shenhua, initially on loan before a permanent move in 2021.
Zeng Cheng is still officially on the books at Shenhua, providing veteran experience to the team’s reserves and youth teams, helping to guide the next generation of players in the club’s system.
Unlikely to play in the Chinese Super League again, the 38-year-old Zeng Cheng looks set to retire from football in the near future, with 110 clean sheets to his name.
3. Yan Junling (112)
Next on this list is a player who has enjoyed his entire career with just one team. Yan Junling came through the prestigious Genbao Football Academy in the early 2000s before making his first team debut with the now-named Shanghai Port in 2007.
The club debuted in the Chinese Super League in 2013 and have been one of the most successful clubs in China’s top tier since then, winning three league titles and the 2019 Chinese Super Cup.
Along with his domestic success, Yan Junling has been a regular feature for the China National team and has earned 58 international caps since first making his debut in 2015.
Yan Junling has been at the heart of all of the team’s successes and will go down as one of the club’s first genuine legends, having already played in over 466 professional games for the red side of Shanghai.
The 34-year-old remains the team’s first choice goalkeeper and could add to his existing list of clean sheets, which currently stands at 112, and could very well see himself move up in this list should he accrue enough in 2026 and beyond.
2. Yang Zhi (118)
Runner-up on this list is a player who arguably deserved to sit atop it by the time he retired, which was forced upon him due to a serious injury that cut his career short.
Yang Zhi was a prolific goalkeeper for Beijing Guoan, the only club he played for in the Chinese Super League after he joined from Guangdong Xiongying after the 2004 season.
From 2005 to 2017, Yang Zhi was arguably the first name on Beijing’s teamsheets, putting in many impressive displays that kept opponents at bay – allowing the club to win the 2009 Chinese Super League while seeing himself named Goalkeeper of the Year three years in a row between 2007 and 2009.
Often overlooked on the international stage, Yang Zhi managed to earn 38 caps for his country and made over 470 total professional appearances at club level.
Injury towards the end of 2017 saw him ruled out for the next two years. Despite his attempts to regain fitness and return to playing, Yang Zhi retired as a player after the 2019 season and moved into goalkeeper coaching.
He is now the first-team goalkeeper coach for Qingdao West Coach, where his 118 career clean sheets give him plenty of pedigree to pass on his knowledge.
1. Wang Dalei (127)
Atop this list of arguably the best goalkeepers in the history of the Chinese Super League is a player that people either love or hate, Wang Dalei.
Wang Dalei has been around for years, having begun his career with Shanghai United in 2006 and playing his entire career in the Chinese Super League since then.
After one year with Shanghai United, Wang Dalei moved to city rivals Shanghai Shenhua, with whom he made 120 league appearances and helped guide to the 2007 A3 Champions Cup.
After the 2013 season, he took his talents to Shandong Taishan, the club he continues to play for as the preferred number one, alongside his role as captain of the China National Team.
His time with Shandong has been fruitful, as he has lifted the 2021 Chinese Super League along with four Chinese FA Cups and one Chinese Super Cup.
288 league appearances later and some are questioning how much longer Wang Dalei has left in him, but he remains a key player for Shandong and could extend his lead at the top of this list in 2026 should he continue to be the established first choice.
Yan Junling remains the only player who could threaten Wang Dalei’s position atop this list, being two years younger and only 15 clean sheets behind.
Two strong seasons from him, along with a weaker one or two from Wang Dalei, could change the order of this list quite significantly.