Chen Tao started his football career with Shenyang Ginde in the 2003 season where he made an immediate impact by playing in eighteen league games and scoring one goal.
[4] He made his competitive debut for Shenhua on his 24th birthday, in their first Asian Champions League group stage match against Singapore Armed Forces, where they won 4-1.
[5] He would quickly go on to establish himself an integral member of the team and go on to score his first goal for the club on 3 April 2009 in a league game against Shandong Luneng that Shenhua won 4-1.
After being dropped by Shanghai Shenhua, Chen was given a chance to go on loan to top tier side Tianjin Teda during the 2010 season and would immediately make an impact towards the team when on his league debut on 27 July 2010 he would also score his first goal for the club against Henan Construction in a 2-1 victory.
[13] This would see him promoted to the senior team and called up for the squad that took part in the 2005 East Asian Football Championship where he made his debut on 31 July 2005 against South Korea in a 1-1 draw.