The league in Saudi Arabia gained “a great deal” from Jordan Henderson’s brief relocation, according to the vice-chairman of the organization.
The 33-year-old English midfielder left Al Ettifaq less than six months into a lucrative three-year deal, and he finalized his move to Ajax, a Dutch team, last month.
During his Amsterdam news appearance, Henderson made hints about his misgivings over his relocation to the Middle East.
Having previously supported LGBTQ+ rights, he faced widespread criticism for relocating to Saudi Arabia, a country that prohibits same-sex partnerships.
Jordan Henderson, despite his departure, was one of the finest additions to the Saudi Pro League, according to Saudi Pro League president Saad Al Lazeez, who made this statement on Wednesday at the Financial Times Business of Football Summit.
“We signed 93 players in the summer window, and I would say 28 to 30 of them would be in anybody’s list of the top 300 players, and you don’t expect all of them to stay.
“Sometimes things do not work out, sometimes the player does not adapt, you expect those things to happen.
“But I still maintain Jordan Henderson was one of our best signings, we benefited a great deal from his signing, we’re learning a lot of lessons and we will continue to grow from there.
“We have been with Jordan throughout his journey from the day we signed him in the UK. We still maintain a good relationship with him. He’s a great guy, a great person. It just did not work out. So that’s life,” he said.
