Henderson left Celtic to sign for the Italian side in January, despite alleged interest from Preston North End.
Bari saved around £1,655,000 on Liam Henderson – and beat Preston North End to the Celtic midfielder’s signature, according to sporting director, Sean Sogliano.
Henderson called time on his Celtic career after nearly a decade in January, taking the unusual step of moving to Italian football with Bari.
And having seen the 21-year-old impress in his first five Serie B outings – in which he has registered a goal and an assist – Sogliano has claimed his side got a bargain from the Scottish champions.
“Liam Henderson’s transfer was seven months in the making for us,” he said, as quoted by the Scottish Sun. “We ended up signing him for only €130,000 [£115,000]. Last year we were told he would cost €2 million [£1.77 million].
“There were also a number of clubs who wanted to sign him too, like Preston North End for example.”
Henderson’s Celtic contract was due to expire in the summer – which according to Sogiano was key to Bari’s decision to delay their move.
He added: “The turning point for us was knowing his contract was going to expire at the end of the season and we knew his value would diminish.
“He has signed a two-and-a-half year deal and we also have a renewal option. It’s a very good piece of business.”
Henderson made 37 appearances for Celtic – in which he registered three goals and two assists – but only played 14 times under current Bhoys manager Brendan Rodgers.
At the time of his departure, the Livingston native had Scott Brown, Callum McGregor, Olivier Ntcham, Stuart Armstrong, Nir Bitton, Tom Rogic and Eboue Kouassi for company in central midfield.
Preston, meanwhile, failed to add to their options in Henderson’s position, despite being linked with several alternatives last month.
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