In 2009, Zhang Li started his professional footballer career with Henan Jianye in the Chinese Super League.
[1] He eventually made his league debut for Henan on 21 May 2011 in a game against Dalian Shide.
In February 2017, Zhang moved to fellow Super League side Changchun Yatai.
[5] On 4 August 2018 in a league game against Shanghai Shenhua, Zhang was accused of racially abusing opposing player Demba Ba.
[6] An investigation by the Chinese Football Association saw Zhang officially guilty of causing chaos, however no reference to racial abuse was mentioned.