Birmingham City has reportedly joined fellow English Premier League club Newcastle in the race to sign China captain Zheng Zhi from China Super League club Shandong Luneng. Zheng spent four months on loan at Charlton last season, making 12 appearances. Brmingham's interest in the 26-year-old player comes a week after Hong Kong businessman Carson Yeung became the club's leading shareholder. "We've started observing local players. We hope to have some new developments in three months. We all know the Premier League in England is very popular. I believe it will get even more popular in China. The market is bigger," Yeung told PA Sport.