And just like that, in a blaze of mediocrity, he was gone. Jordan Henderson, the self-proclaimed saving grace of Saudi Arabian football is scuttling away from the region, heading cap in hand to Ajax as he looks to put his Al-Ettifaq nightmare behind him.
He leaves with his team eighth in the table and with manager Steven Gerrard's job hanging by a thread. But, instead of sticking around and helping the man who secured him his £375,000-per-week salary turn things around, Henderson is fleeing Dammam and heading to the Eredivisie.
As many of his critics predicted at the time, all the claims of him "adding value" and embracing "new challenges" in Saudi Arabia turned out to be complete guff. Henderson has also burned his bridges with the LGBT+ community - and for what? According to reports, he might even end up being out of pocket if he is forced to repay the bonuses he received in the summer, as is expected.
No doubt, Henderson's financially-ruinous decision to cut his Saudi adventure short has been significantly influenced by the looming prospect of missing out on Euro 2024. However, despite significant pressure from the media and fans, Henderson has been very publicly backed by his international manager so far.