Bolivian midfielder Erwin Saavedra's return to his former employer after a frustrating time spell at Mamelodi Sundowns has come with a financial dent for the DStv Premiership champions.
Saavedra has returned to Bolivar La Paz on loan two years after he left and in so doing will run down his Sundowns contract which is up at the end of June.
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The 28-year-old had already been undergoing his rehabilitation in Bolivar's facilities since his last injury at Sundowns a year ago.
Once ready to play he will then do duty in the Bolivian Primera Division Apertura where Bolivar have already played four games and sit top of Group D.
As that unfolds, Sundowns will be scratching their heads about the one transfer of South Americans that didn't work out.
The Brazilians' list of recruits from South American has had Marcelo Allende (Chilean), Matias Esquivel (Argentine), Gaston Sirino (Uruguayan), Junior Mendieta (Argentine), Lucas Ribeiro Costa (Brazilian), Ricardo Nascimento (Brazilian), Mauricio Affonso (Uruguayan), Jose Ali Meza (Venezuelan), Saavedra (Bolivian), Emiliano Tade (Argentine), and Leonardo Castro (Colombian) over the last decade.
Yet Saavedra delivered the least of all those South Americans.
Even Uruguayan forward Mauricio Affonso was able to last two years and scored six goals through spending more time off the pitch than on it due to injuries.
Saavedra was brought in for USD800 000 (approx. R15 million) after Sundowns convinced Bolivar to release their star midfielder at the beginning of 2022.
He was worth every cent at the time as a Bolivian international with 18 caps six of which had come in a row until his last in February 2022 just before moving to Sundowns.
In the end, instead of getting value for money, The Brazilians are now counting their losses and getting ready to move on.
Saavedra's time at Chloorkop was a trail of misfortunes and never got to genuinely showcase his abilities and prove his worth.
With only 10 appearances at Sundowns, Saavedra lost his place in the national team.
His appearance count in South Africa came down to 265 minutes and never played a match from start to finish.
This meant each of his 10 appearances had the weight of USD80 000 (approx. R1,5 million) based on the transfer fee that was paid by Sundowns.
Saavedra also had a personal package slanting towards the region of R4,5 million per annum gross.
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So, for two years, Sundowns forked out closer to R10 million on Saavedra's package after parting ways with further millions for his transfer.
In the end it didn't work and will count as an expensive waste for Sundowns.