Born in Denton, Greater Manchester, Clough came through the Bolton Wanderers academy having joined the club at the age of 8. He made his debut for the first team aged 19 on 3 January 2015 when he started and scored the winning goal in a 1–0 home win against local rivalsWigan Athletic in the FA Cup 3rd round. After the match Bolton manager Neil Lennon described Clough as a special player. Two days later he was rewarded with a contract extension until 2017. He scored two goals on his senior league debut on 31 January against Wolverhampton Wanderers in a 2–2 draw. Clough won the penalty that gave Icelandic striker Eiður Guðjohnsen the opportunity to score the opening goal in a 1–2 loss at home to Liverpool in an FA Cup fourth round replay, after the match Fabrice Muamba described him as the best player on the pitch. On 28 February 2015, Clough scored a 6th goal in 9 games in a match against Brighton to make him Bolton's leading scorer for the 2014–15 season. However, in a league match, at home to Reading, he was one of three Bolton players to go off injured in the first half; his injury, a dislocated shoulder, prevented him playing for the remainder of the season. After scoring five goals in October 2016, Zach Clough was named League Oneplayer of the month.
On 30 January 2017, Clough transferred to Nottingham Forest on a four and a half year deal for an undisclosed fee, reported by the Nottingham Post to be over £3,000,000. Clough made his debut for Forest on 4 February, starting a 2–1 victory over Aston Villa. His first goals for the club came in a 3-0 victory over eventual runners-up Brighton, albeit with Brighton's players claiming that Clough's opener came off the head of Britt Assombalonga, who had been stood in an offside position. On 18 March Clough opened the scoring in the local derby match with fierce rivals Derby County, in an eventual 2-2 draw between the sides.
Return to Bolton Wanderers (loan)
On transfer deadline day on 31 January 2018, Clough returned to Bolton on loan until the end of the season, joined by Forest teammate Tyler Walker; Clough replaced Walker after 58 minutes in their 1–0 victory over Bristol City to make his second Bolton début.
On loan deadline day on 31 August 2018, Clough signed on loan for Rochdale until January 2019. He scored on his debut for Rochdale in a 2-1 EFL Trophy win over Bury on 4 September 2018. On 31 January 2019, Clough rejoined Rochdale on loan for the rest of the 2018-19 season.
Career statistics
;Notes
Honours
Individual
Football League One Player of the Month: October 2016
