While Jordan Henderson might have escaped his Saudi Pro League ‘nightmare’ in January, it was a different story for Roberto Firmino.
The pair both left Liverpool to move to the Gulf State last summer, with the England international completing a controversial £12m transfer to Al-Ettifaq while the Brazilian joined Al-Ahli on a Bosman transfer. Having won every major honour at Anfield, both were marquee arrivals in their new surroundings and named club captain at their respective clubs.
Yet both would struggle in the Middle East during the first half of the season. Regularly playing in front of paltry crowds that would only fill a fraction of Anfield, Henderson made 19 appearances for Al-Ettifaq, as he failed to score but registered five assists, after reuniting with Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard.
But while the Saudi side would start the season well, they won only one of their 13 league and cup games since the end of September, dropping to eighth in the Pro League table as a result. With Henderson and his family struggling to settle in the Gulf State, the former Reds captain would ultimately seek pastures new and ripped up his contract to return to Europe with Ajax last month.
The 33-year-old had at least played consistently for Al-Ettifaq, before deciding Saudi Arabia wasn’t for him, with it his own decision to seek an exit. In contrast, Al-Ahli had reportedly wanted to offload Firmino after half a season, only for such a move to fail to materialise.
Enjoying a dream start with the club, the forward actually scored a hat-trick on his debut as he captained Al-Ahil to a 3-1 victory over Al-Hazem on the opening day of the season. But making 19 appearances for the club to date, he hasn’t scored since.
