(AP)
Updated: 2007-08-09 23:27

China captain Zheng Zhi will return to Charlton Athletic for a second spell after signing a permanent deal with the English First Division side, Chinese media said Thursday.

Zheng was due to fly to London on Friday, the official Xinhua News Agency said, citing his Chinese club Shandong Luneng.

A deal between the clubs was signed after "several rounds of difficult talks," Xinhua quoted Shandong's executive general manager, Han Gongzheng, as saying. It said Han had refused to reveal transfer arrangements.

Charlton, who were relegated from the Premier League last season, open the new one on August 17 against Scunthorpe United.

Zheng joined Charlton on a six-month loan deal in January, then returned to Shandong in June for an Asian league champions competition.

The midfielder has scored one goal in five games for Charlton. He had 21 goals for Shandong in 2006 and was named China's player of the year for the second time.