Jordan Henderson terminates Al-Ettifaq Contract after Six Months, Agree deal with new Premier League Club
After spending just under six months with Al Ettifaq in the Saudi Pro League, Jordan Henderson has reportedly agreed to an agreement to depart the team.
Henderson landed in Saudi Arabia not long after the legendary Steven Gerrard of Liverpool was named manager of Al Ettifaq.
Even though Al Ettifaq won the Saudi Pro League after five games during his first five games with the club, they haven’t won since October 28.
Furthermore, Henderson was ‘desperate’ to finish his six-month journey in Saudi Arabia and secure an instant return to the Premier League, according to a Daily Mail story earlier this month.
Claiming to have’struggled with the heat and humidity’ in the nation, the 33-year-old is unimpressed with Al Ettifaq’s 7,800 average attendance.
The former captain of the Premier League winning team was even rumoured to be willing to accept a significant wage decrease in order to quit.
The Athletic now claims that Henderson has reached an agreement to leave Al Ettifaq and join the Dutch powerhouse Ajax.
As long as the 33-year-old completes those preparations, Ajax won’t have to pay a transfer fee to acquire him for the Johan Cruyff Arena. He’s also returning to the UK via plane from the winter training camp of his present club.
With Ajax currently in fifth place in the Eredivisie after rallying from a disastrous start to the season that left them in the relegation zone for several weeks, Henderson will now look to continue leading Ajax’s comeback.
They are 11 points behind Feyenoord in second place, who hold the second and last automatic Champions League qualification slot, although they are just 23 points behind leaders PSV, who have won all 17 of their games under Peter Bosz.
It seems that the 33-year-old, who severed his 12-year relationship with Liverpool last summer, did not think that a return to the Premier League was a feasible option.
He will now be starting a new journey in the Netherlands, one he hopes will be more fruitful on the pitch than his time spent with Al Ettifaq.
