Upon his return to Dalian Shide at the beginning of the 2009 Chinese Super League Zhao would make his debut for the team in the club's first game of the season as a late substitute on March 22, 2009 in a 4-1 defeat to Tianjin Teda.
[1] After the game Zhao would go on to become a vital member of the team as the club gained mid-table positions for the next several seasons, eventually going on to score his first league goal for them on April 28, 2012 in a 1-1 draw against Hangzhou Greentown.
[2] On 26 February 2015, Zhao transferred to fellow Chinese Super League side Tianjin Teda.
[4] He would gradually start to establish himself as an integral member of the team and go on to score his first goal for the club on 2 August 2020, in a league game against Chongqing Dangdai Lifan in a 2-2 draw.
[5] After six seasons at Tianjin he would join fellow top tier club Wuhan for the start of the 2021 Chinese Super League campaign on 26 February 2021.