Dong Fangzhuo's United contract has been cancelled by
mutual consent.
The 23-year-old striker became the first ever
Chinese player at Old Trafford when he joined from hometown club
Dalian Shide in January 2004. He initially spent two years on loan
at Royal Antwerp until he was eligible to play in England, and
scored 35 goals in 61 games during his time in Belgium.
Dong pulled on the red shirt for the first time in a friendly
against Hong Kong XI in July 2005 and scored in the 2-0 win. The
following summer he got the winning goal in a 1-0 win over Kaizer
Chiefs during the pre-season tour of South Africa.
He finally made his competitive debut for the first team against
Chelsea in May 2007, but his struggle to break into Sir Alex
Ferguson’s squad continued last season. He only made two senior
appearances in 2007/08, in September's Carling Cup defeat to
Coventry and as a substitute in the 1-1 Champions League draw in
Rome.
Dong had more joy in the reserves, including four goals in a
three-game purple patch in November 2007, before a knee injury
ended his season early.
In this summer’s Olympics in his homeland, Dong scored a late
equaliser for China against New Zealand but could not prevent his
country exiting the tournament at the first stage.
