Yang Liyu started his football career when he joined
Campeonato de Portugal side
Gondomar from
Wuhan Zall in 2015. He made his debut for the club on 8 May 2016 in a 1–0 loss against
Anadia, where he was sent off in 56th minute. He was officially promoted to the first team squad in the summer of 2016. He played six league matches for the club in the 2016–17 season.
Tianjin Teda On 26 January 2017, Yang was loaned out to
Chinese Super League side
Tianjin Teda for one season. He made his debut for the club on 4 March 2017 in a 2–0 away loss against
Shandong Luneng. He scored his first goal for the club on 9 August 2017 in a 3–1 away loss against
Yanbian Funde. He scored his second goal for the club on 27 September 2017 in a 3–1 home win against
Guizhou Hengfeng. Yang refused to extend his loan with the club at the end of the 2017 season.
Guangzhou Evergrande On 24 December 2017, Yang transferred to fellow top tier side
Guangzhou Evergrande. He made his debut for the club on 14 February 2018 in a 1–1 home draw against
Buriram United in the
2018 AFC Champions League, coming on as a substitute for
Alan Carvalho in the 80th minute. He scored his first goal for the club on 11 August 2018 in a 3–2 away loss against
Changchun Yatai. He scored his second goal for the club on 2 September 2018 in a 2–1 win against
Shanghai Shenhua, scoring the winner. The following season he would go on to establish himself as a vital member of the team that went on to win the
2019 Chinese Super League title. He made 137 appearances and scored 22 goals for Guangzhou across five seasons.
Beijing Guoan On 30 March 2023, Yang joined
Chinese Super League club
Beijing Guoan. On 15 April 2024, Yang made his debut for Guoan in a 1–1 home draw against
Meizhou Hakka. On 20 April 2024, he scored his first goal for Guoan in a 1–1 away draw against
Wuhan Three Towns. ==International career==