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Personal
Fullname: Edward Henrik Larsson
aka: Henrik Larsson, ‘Henke’ (by Friends), ‘King of Kings’ (by Celts), ‘Ghod’ (Celts), ‘The Magnificent Seven’
Height: 5′ 9″ (1.75m)
Weight: 12.02
Born: 20 September 1971
Birthplace: Helsingborg, Sweden
Signed: 25 July 1997 (from Feyenoord £350k)
Left: 30 June 2004 (to Barcelona, free)
Position: Centre-Forward, Striker
First game: Hibernian 2-1 Celtic, 3 August 1997, League
Last game: Dunfermline Athletic 1-3 Celtic, Hampden 22 May 2004, Scottish Cup Final
First goal: Berwick Rangers 0-0 Celtic, Tynecastle 9 August 1997, League Cup
Last goal: Dunfermline Athletic 1-3 Celtic, Hampden 22 May 2004, Scottish Cup Final
Internationals: Sweden
International Caps: 106 Caps
International Goals: 36 Goals
Summary
| “You don’t want to walk in another man’s footsteps, you want to create your own.” Henrik Larsson |
He went on to become a Celtic legend, playing a central part in the revitalisation of the club as it once again dominated Scottish football having been in the doldrums for much of the previous 15 years. He broke domestic scoring records and was the talisman to take the club to the UEFA Cup final in 2003. He was a truly world class player.
Having completed seven very successful years with Celtic in Glasgow, after the end of the 2003/04 season he signed a one year contract with an option for a second year for Spanish giants Barcelona. Despite having missed the majority of his first season with Barcelona through injury, the option to play in season 2005/06 was extended and accepted.
In his last match for Barcelona, he set up both of Barca’s goals in the European Cup Final as they won the Champions League.
In 2004 he was voted the greatest Swedish footballer of all time.
In the summer of 2006 he returned to his native Helsingborg to play for Helsingborgs IF.
Trivia
- A Celtic legend.
- Scored his 200th goal for Celtic in the UEFA cup final.
- Won the European Golden Boot for highest goals scorer in Europe in 2000/01.
- Larsson is actually his mother’s maiden name. He was given the name as felt would help him fit in more easily.
- Scored an own goal in his European debut for Celtic.
- His signature tune at Parkhead was the theme tune from “The Magnificent Seven” (a western movie), no.7 was his jersey number.
- Henrik’s first and last competitive goals at Celtic Park were for teams other than Celtic. An Own Goal against Celtic for FC Tirol Insbruuk in August 1998 and then scoring for Barca in 2004
- Trademark: After scoring a goal he used to stick his tongue out hanging (in homage to an NBA basketball player who used to do similar).
Pre-Celtic 
Henrik Larsson is undeniably one of the most wonderful footballers to have ever graced Scottish football, and is a Celtic legend.
Born in Helsingborg, Henrik Larsson was the son of a Swedish mother and a father from the the Cape Verde islands, the blend giving him that beloved dirty blonde dreadlocks look. His early years were tough, and he might have ended up following a different path when one of his former teachers warned him about becoming a footballer. On leaving school he ended up in a job as a fruit-packer, and life could have been so more ordinary.
Football was his saviour, and from an early age he had thrown himself into the game with his local youth. He moved onto playing for Helsingborg, where he helped the side to promotion and a strong position up the league table. He scored a phenomenal 34 goals in 31 games.
His good form led to interest from abroad and a move to Feyenoord should have been a godsend. It turned out to be a frustrating time.
Signed originally by future Celtic manager Wim Jansen, after just two months there was a change in management, and Jansen’s successor just did not utilise Larsson properly. Playing Larsson in different positions and then substituting him repeatedly after just 60 minutes in games was not helping Larsson’s development. This fostered a poor working relationship, and Larsson was being hindered.
Having indicated a wish to move on, the situation became farcical when Larsson was left to go to court to force his club to allow him to exit as entitled to by his contracts subject to minimum fees being paid. Not an easy time. The only respite was a wonderful summer with the Swedish national side who reached the semi-finals of the World Cup in 1994, with Larsson one of the heroes.
Former manager Wim Jansen hadn’t forgotten him, and invited him to Celtic. Was it fate? As Larsson was to put it:
“It’s hard to say no. You have to say yeah.”
Feyenoord’s loss was to become Celtic’s gain.
Celtic Career: Pre-Martin O’Neill (1997-2000)
| “I’m not Di Canio, I’m Henrik Larsson and I am going to try to make my own mark on the football team.” Henrik Larsson |
Following the complicated contract dispute with Feyenoord, he was signed by Celtic manager Wim Jansen in July 1997 for a fee of £650,000. For many a curious looking character with his dirty blonde dreadlocks, many didn’t know what to expect from him. Granted he had a good World Cup in 1994, but a price tag of £650k plus didn’t seem to signal for many that the club had bought a world beater (it’s amazing how things turn out sometimes).
So was this legendary player to start with a bang? Yes, but not exactly how it was meant to be written. In his debut, a bad pass to Chick Charnley (an opposition player) allowed him to score a scorcher against Celtic which allowed him to live off that goal forever more in his dinner speeches. Celtic lost 2-1 in that match, and he didn’t fare much better in his first European game, scoring an own goal, although Celtic did run out 6-2 winners.
In any case, this was the least of his problems with Larsson’s first season being what was forecast to be the lowest ever for the club, with Rangers’ favourites to win ‘Ten in a row‘ (league titles). They didn’t, and Larsson played a strong part in Celtic’s own ‘One in a row‘ to ‘Stop the Ten‘. A makeshift squad, having lost many of the better players (e.g. the three amigos and McStay), battled their way to the title. Larsson struck up a good partnership with his fellow strikers, scoring 19 goals himself, a magnificent return. Larsson recognised this league title as one of the highlights of his Celtic career.
Problem was that Wim Jansen was the man who brought him to Parkhead, stating Larsson as “The best signing I ever made“, but due to internal politics Jansen departed from Celtic at the end of the season (or was in any case about to be sacked depending on whose story you want to believe). Many believed that Larsson would leave with him but he didn’t thankfully although things weren’t to become any easier.
The next manager was Jo Venglos, an affable man and a fair manager, but with a Rangers-biased press tearing into him and insulting him at every point, life at Celtic for both himself and the players was never to be easy. The introduction of Lubo to the Celtic squad was for Larsson a catalyst that helped to push him fully into the limelight, and he lapped up the support and the goals.
The golden striker partnership with stroppy Viduka was short-lived due to the attitude of the latter, but when it worked it was magnificent. It wasn’t enough to stop Rangers who were outspending Celtic. In any case, Larsson’s haul for the season made him one of the few players to be able to really hold their head up high. The standards he set himself and his demeanour were something that was making him increasingly noticed by all (within and outside the club), with respect from everyone.
At the end of it it all, it was still a poor season for Celtic, so was Larsson about to leave? Again thankfully no, despite overtures from other clubs including Manchester Utd. He and his family were happy and nothing else mattered.
If ever there was a season to test Larsson, then the 1999/00 season was it. New set of managers (John Barnes with Kenny Dalglish) installed at the helm, and at the start there was a new confidence about the place but it turned out to be quite ephemeral, John Barnes being in way over his head. If things weren’t tough enough, the lowest moment was to come for Larsson. In a UEFA Cup/European match against Lyon, Henrik Larsson’s studs got caught in the ground as he was running, and in a freak accident his leg broke in two places.
The pictures made it look even worse than it already was (his shinguard popped out and made it look like he now had three joints), but he was finished for the season. It is painful to look back on that moment, and how everyone all genuinely felt for him as a person let alone as a footballer. It could have been the end of his career, as various footballers have been unable to fully recover from such an injury (mentally or physically) being out for eight months.
Without Larsson, the season went from bad to worse for Celtic: dumping our manager, humiliating Scottish Cup exit,infighting amongst players and so on. Worst of all were the big defeats by Rangers, watching them outspend Celtic and win the league at a canter. In some ways, it’s hard to know what would have been if Larsson was still there and not out injured. Would it all not have happened? You can only guess now.
Somehow, he managed to recover faster than expected to return for the last game of the season (a two-nil win v Dundee Utd) and if nothing else came good out of that season, that at least joyed the hearts of the fans and we’re sure it meant even more to Larsson who was heading to the European Championships with Sweden in Holland/Belgium. It was a poor tournament for Sweden but Larsson managed to score one goal in a defeat to Italy, and coming after the pain of the past year it was a sweet moment (his first goal in a competitive match since his return).
All was to change with the arrival of Martin O’Neill as manager from the 2000/01 season, and Larsson’s golden era was to begin.
Celtic Career: the Martin O’Neill years (2000-2004)
| “This is the club for me. This is where I made myself as a player, this is where everybody got to know me and this is the club that I will be eternally grateful to…” Henrik Larsson |
Martin O’Neill’s arrival at the club was to be instrumental for Henrik’s career at the club. Having played under four managers already at Celtic, Larsson might have felt a bit tired of the merry-go-round, but the arrival of players such as Sutton, Thompson and Lennon changed both the dynamic and atmosphere surrounding the whole squad that possibly it was like as if he himself had just arrived at the club. Most importantly, Larsson scored in the first league game of the season (coincidentally again against Dundee Utd) to get him off the starting blocks, his first competitive goal for Celtic in around 10 months.
A great start for Celtic in the first run, with 6 wins on the trot (2 in the UEFA cup) and the first team were to next face Rangers who were arrogant and bloated from their pre-season spending. So the match was set to play a significant part in how the season was to go for both sides, and there was only one team in the game: Celtic running out 6-2 victors (since dubbed “Demolition Derby“).
The game has become legendary and Larsson stands out more than anyone else. His famous chip goal has been watched, analysed and slavered over more than any other in the club’s history (e.g. Nakamura’s 2006 free-kick goal v Manchester Utd and the Lisbon 1967 goals being the only contenders to Larsson’s). The knock-down from Sutton, then the run from the half-way line, taking on and humiliating the Rangers players (nutmegging one of them), before finally executing the most perfect of chips over the hapless Rangers keeper’s head and into the back of the net; it is sheer world-class, and can be little bettered.
You could go on. Larsson’s place in this game is immense, and his overall play showed a brimming new confidence not only in the first team but in his own game as well. The pain from the injury was history and he’d come back from it a greater player and hungrier than ever to make up for lost time. Larsson at this point had made himself a legend with the Celtic fans, and his name was sung more heartily and with greater devotion than ever before. The match was a turning point for both Larsson and Celtic, and the Larsson Cult was truly born and under way.
Larsson cemented a perfect partnership with Chris Sutton, who in many ways was a very different character. Regardless, both were single-minded in their determination to see Celtic achieve their best and put Rangers in their place, and each played well off of each other, banging in the goals taking the first team further ahead of Rangers. With players such as Thompson, Lennon and Petrov, Larsson had the best support a striker could get. Celtic won the league by 15 points, with Henrik scoring a phenomenal 35 goals in 37 games. Note, Tore Andre Flo scored 11 goals to be Rangers highest scorer and he cost them a fortune of around £12m.
The Larsson-inspired team completed an exceptional Treble that season, something that even the most optimistic Celtic fan at the start of the season would not believe could happen. It was the club’s first treble since Jock Stein was manager at the club. For his achievements, Larsson was awarded the European Golden Boot for highest goal scorer in Europe, catapulting his profile and name throughout the football world. Additionally he was awarded the SFWA footballer of the year award.
2001/02 was another important season, and again Larsson excelled. Celtic didn’t win the treble again, but Celtic qualified for the Champions League group stages for the first time, overcoming Ajax in the preliminary round with a 3-2 aggregate victory with Larsson the creator for Agathe’s goal in the 3-1 win in Amsterdam. A tough group beckoned, but Larsson again was an inspiration, scoring a penalty in Celtic’s opening game against Juventus and scoring the winner v Porto in our second game (Celtic’s first victory in the Champs Lge).
Famously the team failed to go through to the knock-out stages, even though Celtic amassed 9 pts (just one behind Porto who came second), but it was the team’s first time in the Champions League group stages and it was a good learning experience for all. Celtic were then knocked out the UEFA cup (which the first team had subsequently qualified for), losing in a shoot-out and even Larsson missed a penalty.
Regardless of any disappointments in Europe, at home Celtic won the league with Larsson scoring 29 goals in 33 games, another phenomenal rate, and nothing about him could be questioned. On the field he was peerless.
If there is one season for which Larsson will be remembered for more than most, it will be the 2002/03 season (the “Seville Season“). So much has been written about the season that there can be little to add, yet people should remember that Celtic actually didn’t win any trophies. Rangers won the league and Celtic lost in the UEFA Cup Final. So why was it all so magical? The reason was simply that the club regained its pride at a level not seen for generations, having to confront and defeat stronger opposition each round in the UEFA cup, and each time defeating the odds in doing do. It was the journey as much as the final itself.
The talisman for the season was Henrik Larsson again, and his part in all this was immeasurable. As the matches got tougher on the Road to Seville (the final), Larsson upped his game each time. Goals against Blackburn home & away stunned their manager who arrogantly claimed that it was Men against Boys (where Celtic were just the boys) after the first leg. Larsson’s winning goal in the home game made him the highest scoring player for a Scottish club in European competitions.
Add in goals against Celta Vigo, Liverpool and Boavista, and he was the difference that took Celtic to the final. He likely would have scored against Stuttgart also but had to miss those games due to a fractured jaw; the importance of these victories at least showed to the wider audience that Celtic were not a one-man team as some critics had called the side(a player being criticised for being too good).
The final was a bittersweet day for Larsson. Till then the greatest moment in Larsson’s club career, and the team were prepared for everything but the 3-2 defeat was a difficult one to take. Larsson was just untouchable, and many put his performance in the match as the best in his Celtic career. So to be on the losing side is not an easy thing to take. His two goals in the final were as perfect a set of headers as you can ever get, both times dragging Celtic from behind Porto to stay in contention in the match. The goals are worth watching again and again.
The day was about more than Larsson, but without him it is unimaginable that Celtic would have achieved what the first team had without him or got as close as they did. There were so many barriers to overcome (mentally, financially, physically etc) to get to the final, and Larsson made the support believe, and believe everyone did regardless of the final result.
Larsson’s final season was 2003/04. Celtic went on to win the league and cup double again, and he scored 30 goals in 37 league games, the highlight of which was seeing Celtic whitewash Rangers by beating them 5 times in 5 matches in the season. In Europe, Celtic again close to qualifying through the group stages to the KO stages of Champs League but again fell at the last hurdle, and fell into the UEFA Cup.
To show that last season was no one-off, Celtic made it to the quarter-finals of the UEFA cup where the first team were to lose to Villarreal over two legs. Having overcome Barcelona in the previous round, it was bittersweet that Celtic didn’t reach the UEFA cup final once more during Larsson’s career at the club.
Throughout his final season Larsson had made it clear that this was to be his last, and nothing was to change his mind. Continuous offers and pleas form the fans & management for him to stay fell on deaf ears, but that was his style, In retrospect, possibly it was best he left on a high rather than the support watching his ability slowly decline over coming years, but just nobody wanted it to ever end. In many ways, he saved Celtic in so many games in that last season of his, but you could see he was winding down already (even then he was still better than anyone else in Scotland and beyond). In any case, it was giving others a chance to win the “man of the match” award instead of himself which was the then standard result.
His last game, in a farewell friendly against Seville, was emotional for everyone, and he summed up his whole time at Celtic as perfectly as only he can do: “It’s been so special for me to play here,” Larsson announced in a brief address to the crowd after the game. A banner was held up with the line “Henrik, Thanks for the Memories” (in Swedish) which summed it up from the fans. Blessed memories.
Will the Celtic support ever see his like again? Who knows but it wasn’t just the goals, it was the skill, the quality, the majestic ability to deceive the defenders and spring a surprise. It’s usually the characters everyone seems to remember and what antics they were up to off the pitch like Best, Jinky, McAvennie, Maradona et al, but there was none of that with Larsson. He was the perfect professional both on and off the pitch with not a single bad word to say about him. He broke domestic scoring records, but his play was two-way and he created as many chances for his team mates as he scored for himself. His unselfish style was refreshing as it was brilliant to watch. He is a benchmark against which anyone in football rarely sees being equalled as a complete package of a player and person.
In many ways, it is hard to describe how much he meant to all of the support at Celtic. He was one of the finest players in the world, and he loved the supporters as much as the support loved him. He gave more to the club than anyone could possibly ask.
His departure to Barcelona was painful to see him leave, but no one will ever forget him. It was a privilege to see him play for Celtic.
Post-Celtic
| “When he came to Barcelona, Henrik said nice things about me but by the time he left he was my idol.” Barcelona legend Ronaldinho on Larsson |
In 2004, after having moved to Barcelona, inevitably as if by fate again Celtic were drawn to face Barcelona in the Champions League group stages. Ridiculously, he was booed by a section of the Celtic support (unacceptable) when he came on as a substitute against Celtic at Celtic Park, and then inevitably went on to score against Celtic in the match, which he didn’t celebrate. After the game he said:
“It was very difficult for me to celebrate my goal because I had so many great times here…”
In 2004, The Swedish Football Association bestowed upon him the accolade “Greatest Swedish football player of the last 50 years“.
Larsson’s international record was impressive with 37 goals in 106 games, many of which he played in midfield or as a winger. He always made his mark on big occasions and has scored at three World Cups (1994 at which Sweden came 3rd, 2002 and 2006), and two European Championships (2000 and 2004).
In 2005 Larsson returned briefly to Glasgow to receive an honorary degree from the University of Strathclyde, in recognition of his contribution to football and for his charity work.
In January of 2006, Henrik announced his decision to leave his current club F.C. Barcelona and return to Sweden at the end of his current contract in July 2006, revealing that he politely refused a verbal promise by club president Joan Laporta to extend his contract to the end of the next season. Larsson thinks that at 34 and having a very successful career behind him, it is time to retire from Barça and enjoy his last years in his homeland.
In April 2006 it was reported that team mate Ronaldinho said of Larsson:
“With Henrik leaving us at the end of the season this club is losing a great scorer, no question. But I am also losing a great friend. Henrik was my idol and now that I am playing next to him it is fantastic. He is a real friend and that is a pleasure. I just want to enjoy the remaining time he has with us rather than dwell on what we will be missing when he’s gone. I haven’t tried to convince Henrik to stay at Barcelona. I respect him so much that I can’t try to influence his decision. It’s something he has thought about for a long time. I’m not happy he’s leaving but I’m not going to pressure him at all. At Henrik’s age many players announce their retirement from international football but no one I know his age is at the great physical level Henrik is at right now. He could play at the highest level for a long time.”
Larsson featured at the 2006 World Cup in Germany which was probably his last World Cup. He played in all 4 of Sweden’s games, scoring a last minute equalizer in their final group game against England to take them through to the second round where they lost to Germany.
In May 2006 he was awarded a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) by the British Consulate in Barcelona, in the name of the Queen, for his contributions to British football during the years he spent playing in Glasgow.
In the same month, he won a European Cup/UEFA Champions League winners’ medal after coming late on as a substitute and assisting both of Barcelona’s goals in a 2-1 win over Arsenal. His future team-mate Thierry Henry (who was to move to Barcelona from Arsenal) paid tribute to Larsson’s contribution to Barcelona’s win after the game, saying “People always talk about Ronaldinho, and everything but I didn’t see him today – I saw Henrik Larsson. Two times he came on – he changed the game, that is what killed the game – sometimes you talk about Ronaldinho and Eto’o and people like that, you need to talk about the proper footballer who made the difference and that was Henrik Larsson tonight…“. Indeed, his ability to give Barcelona the cutting edge required to overcome Arsenal was noted by the international press.
In December 2006, Henrik Larsson decided to sign a 2.5 month loan contract with Manchester Utd starting from January 2007. Ironically this came only one week after Celtic beat Manchester Utd in the Champions League group stage to go through to the knock-out phase for the first time. Opinion from the Celtic support was divided but all hoped him the best. He prospered at the club for his short stint and is regarded as the difference between Manchester Utd having won the league with Wayne Rooney in particular benefiting from Larsson beside him. Larsson was begged by the Manchester Utd management and supporters to stay till the end of the season, but as a man of his word he went back to Helsingborg.
When he finally brought his 21-year playing career to an end in October 2009 Helsingborg retired his number 17 shirt.
Post-Playing Career
Two months after hanging up his playing boots, he was tempted into management, with Swedish second division team Landskrona Bois.
However, that spell and his later managerial spells (at Falkenbergs FF & his hometown Helsingborg) little worked out. He even then got knocked back from Southend to take over as their manager!
His reputation though wasn’t dented, and there were nauseous calls for Larsson to return to Celtic by the most doe-eyed of supporters, but the more sensible knew it would not be best unless he had proven himself elsewhere first or it could backfire badly which no-one wanted to see.
He ended up joining Dutchman Ronald Koeman at Barcelona as part of his coaching staff, but left with the others from that coaching team as that tenure failed to work out at what is undeniably a very demanding place.
[…]
Playing Career
| APPEARANCES | LEAGUE | SCOTTISH CUP | LEAGUE CUP | EUROPE | TOTAL |
| 1997–98 | 35 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 46 |
| Goals: | 16 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 19 |
| 1998–99 | 35 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 48 |
| Goals: | 29 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 38 |
| 1999–2000 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 13 |
| Goals: | 7 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 12 |
| 2000–01 | 37 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 50 |
| Goals: | 35 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 53 |
| 2001–02 | 33 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 47 |
| Goals: | 29 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 35 |
| 2002–03 | 35 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 51 |
| Goals: | 28 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 44 |
| 2003–04 | 37 | 5 | 1 | 15 | 58 |
| Goals: | 30 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 41 |
| Total | 221 | 25 | 11 | 56 | 313 |
| Goals: |
174 | 23 | 10 | 35 | 242 |
Goals Against opposition
| Sorted by Team | |
| =========== | |
| Aberdeen | 25 |
| Airdrie | 1 |
| Anderlecht | 1 |
| Ayr Utd | 1 |
| Berwick Rangers | 1 |
| Blackburn | 2 |
| Boavista | 2 |
| Bordeaux | 1 |
| Celta Vigo | 1 |
| Cwmbran Town | 2 |
| Dundee | 16 |
| Dundee Utd | 19 |
| Dunfermline | 30 |
| FC Basel | 1 |
| FK Kaunus | 1 |
| FK Suduva | 3 |
| FK Teplice | 2 |
| Hearts | 23 |
| Hibernian | 11 |
| HJK Helsinki | 2 |
| Jeunesse Esch | 1 |
| Juventus | 2 |
| Kilmarnock | 18 |
| Liverpool | 1 |
| Livingston | 14 |
| Morton | 1 |
| Motherwell | 14 |
| MTK Hungaria | 1 |
| Partick | 3 |
| Porto | 3 |
| Rangers | 15 |
| St Johnstone | 11 |
| St Mirren | 4 |
| St Patrick’s Ath | 1 |
| Tel Aviv | 3 |
| Valencia | 1 |
| Villarreal | 1 |
| Vitoria Guimaraes | 2 |
| Zurich | 1 |
| Champions League 1998-1999 | |
| St. Patrick’s Athletic (Away) | 1 |
| UEFA-Cup 1998-1999 | |
| Vitória Guimarães (Home) | 1 |
| Vitória Guimarães (Away) | 1 |
| FC Zürich (Away) | 1 |
| UEFA-Cup 1999-2000 | |
| Cwmbran Town (Home) | 2 |
| Hapoel Tel-Aviv (Home) | 2 |
| Hapoel Tel-Aviv (Away) | 1 |
| And then came Lyon… | |
| UEFA-Cup 2000-2001 | |
| Jeunesse d’Esch (Away) | 1 |
| HJK Helsinki (Home) | 2 |
| Girondins de Bordeau (Away) | 1 |
| Champions League + UEFA Cup 2001-2002 | |
| Juventus (Away) | 1 |
| FC Porto (Home) | 1 |
| Juventus (Home) | 1 |
| Valencia CF (Home) | 1 |
| Champions League + UEFA Cup 2002-2003 | |
| FC Basel (Home) | 1 |
| Suduva FK Marijampole (Home) | 3 |
| Blackburn Rovers (Home) | 1 |
| Blackburn Rovers (Away) | 1 |
| RC Celta de Vigo (Home) | 1 |
| Liverpool (Home) | 1 |
| Boavista (Home) | 1 |
| Boavista (Away) | 1 |
| FC Porto (Neutral) | 2 |
| Champions League + UEFA Cup 2003-2004 | |
| FBK Kaunas (Away) | 1 |
| MTK Budapest (Away) | 1 |
| RSC Anderlecht (Home) | 1 |
| FK Teplice (Home) | 2 |
| Villarreal (Home) | 1 |
| Goals v Rangers | |
| 2 Home 5-1 game | |
| 2 Home 6-2 game | |
| 1 Away 1-5 game | |
| 1 Away 3-0 game | |
| 2 Home 3-3 game | |
| 1 Home 1-0 Scottish Cup game | |
| 1 Hampden 3-1 LC Semi-final | |
| 1 Hampden 1-2 LC Final | |
| 1 away 2-1 game | _____ |
Honours with Celtic
Scottish League
Scottish League Cup
Scottish Cup
UEFA Cup
- 2002-03 (runners-up)
Individual
- Golden Boot: 2000-01
- MBE: for services to Scottish football 2006
- Greatest Swedish football player of the last 50 years (Swedish FA, 2004)
Pictures
Articles
- Miscellaneous articles
- “King in Exile” interview – Herald (Feb 2006)
- “A Day in Helsingborg” (Psychoheart)
- “Celtic always special to me” (Irish Independent)
- “Celtic v Rangers” better than ‘El Classico’
- Henrik’s Law
Testimonial
Quotes
Books
Comments
“Henrik was more than a player for Celtic..he imbued us with a pride in our heroes, a talismanic figure who on and off the pitch was the best asset Celtic have EVER had.
“He was without doubt one of the very best strikers of his generation in World football. He was an immaculate role model for our youngsters. A family man with a deep rooted love and understanding of his place at Celtic. A foreigner who came to understand and appreciate out history, and a man who rose above the sectarian divide to be appreciated around this parochial little country of ours. He was the best header of a ball I’ve ever seen. He could score with both feet. He was devastating both inside and outside the box. He worked for the team more than any player I’ve ever seen, and he never complained. He was the hardest, dirtiest wee bastard you would ever hate to play against, and he was underestimated by many to their eventual cost.
“In Seville, he gave the greatest individual performance I’ve witnessed from a Celtic player since Jimmy Johnstone v Red Star Belgrade, yet was simply devastated at losing. No place for personal glory with the Looter of Helsingborg.
“I’ve never enjoyed watching any Celtic player as much as I enjoyed watching Henrik Larsson. The day of his last against Dundee Utd was the most bittersweet experience I’ve had at a football match.
“I miss him dreadfully. He gave Celtic more than he ever took from them.
“Quite simply an all time Celtic Legend, and it was my greatest privilege to be there to see him. ”
Fatboab from KStreet summarising what Larsson meant to him and to the Celtic support (July 2008)