Celtic legend Henrik Larsson said farewell to professional football this week after a 21-year career which has seen him scale the heights of the game with Celtic, Barcelona and Manchester United. He played his final match with hometown club Helsingborg in Sweden, leading the line in a 2-0 league loss to Djurgardens.
Forgetting the result on the night, the 38-year-old player was given a rapturous send-off at the end of the match by the club’s supporters, with many lavishing gifts upon him as he stood on the park surrounded by friends and family. A special series of video messages were then played on the Olympia Stadium’s big screens from key figures in his career, with Celtic’s Peter Lawwell thanking the Swede for his time in Glasgow on behalf of the club.
Larsson then addressed those who had turned up to wish him well for the future, giving an emotional farewell speech in the centre circle which brought the normally calm and collected player to tears. “It’s a shame that it has to end like this, with a defeat in the last game,” he told the 11,500 crowd.
”But I have had a fantastic journey these years with experiences that I appreciate enormously.
”I want to thank every one of you that - despite the bad weather - turned up tonight. I am quite a cool lad but in this moment I can’t stop the tears.”
Helsingborg announced that they were going to retire their number 17 shirt in Larsson’s honour and the striker was touched by the move. "It's a fantastic gesture by the club, to retire it for ever. I'm very moved," he said.
Larsson drew the final curtain on a career that saw him rise to become one of the most respected players in the world game. After beginning his career in Sweden with Hogaberg and then Helsingborg, the young forward moved to Feyenoord in Holland, where he was under the influence of Wim Jansen, who would go on to become Celtic manager.
Jansen then recruited him from the Dutch side in 1997 for £650,000 and the player made an instant impact at Parkhead, with his performances in the green and white hoops seeing him take on the status of club legend.
Larsson still holds the record as the Clydesdale Bank Premier League's all-time top goalscorer, with 158 league goals from his six year spell in Glasgow from 1998 to 2004. In his 21-year career, Larsson has picked up numerous medals and accolades.
Whilst many could have forgiven him for playing out his final years at one of Europe’s middle-ranking club, Larsson had other ideas. A free transfer move to Spanish giants Barcelona followed, where he became an idol all over again in his final match for the club.
A substitute in the 2006 UEFA Champions League final, Henrik was thrown into the action with his team 1-0 down in the 61st minute of the game for Mark van Bommel. Within 15 minutes, Larsson proved the inspiration and creator of both late goals for Samuel Eto'o and Juliano Belletti as the Catalans sealed a 2-1 comeback victory.
He then returned to Sweden with Helsingborg, but a call from long-term admirer Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson brought him to England in 2007 for a three month loan spell in which he scored three times.
Together with the Champions League winning medal he won with Barcelona, he also holds four SPL winners medals, won the English Premier League with Man Utd and contributed to two La Liga titles in Spain.
He also picked up the European Golden Boot in 2000/01 whilst at Celtic and was the top goalscorer in the UEFA Cup as Martin O'Neill's side went all the way to the 2003 final against Porto in Seville, a match in which Larsson scored twice.
The Swedish striker has hinted that he may move to playing floorball now that his footballing career is over but has stated his intention to return to Scotland and complete his coaching badges. Many have predicted that Larsson could one day take over the manager’s job at Parkhead and there would be few who would not welcome the return of one of the finest players to grace Scottish football in recent years.
To mark Larsson’s retiral, we have taken a dip into the STV archives to find key moment from his time in Scotland. You can see the videos and read about Larsson’s plans for the future here.
With thanks to Magnus Ericsson and Marcus Ekdahl of Heslingborgs Dagblad (http://hd.se/sport) for the video footage.
