Henrik Larsson

Edward Henrik Larsson (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈhɛnːrɪk ˈlɑːʂɔn]; born 20 September 1971) is a Swedish professional football coach and former player who played 106 times for the Swedish national team. A striker, Larsson began his career with Högaborgs BK. In 1992, he moved to Helsingborg IF where in his first campaign he helped the club win promotion to Allsvenskan after 24 seasons. He moved to Feyenoord in November 1993, staying for four years before leaving in 1997 to join Scottish Premiership club Celtic and enjoying great success there. During his time in the Dutch Eredivisie, he won two KNVB Cups with Feyenoord. He later played for Barcelona, earning the Spanish title twice and the Champions League before returning to Helsingborg. He had a loan spell at Manchester United, with whom he won the English Premier League in 2006–07, and retired in 2009.

Larsson is often regarded as one of the greatest foreign imports in Scottish football, having been signed by Wim Jansen for Celtic in July 1997 for a fee of £650,000. In his first season at the club, he played a crucial role in Celtic winning their first league title in ten years. Larsson suffered a broken leg in a UEFA Cup tie against Lyon in 1999. He returned to score 53 goals in a 2000–01 season that saw him win the European Golden Shoe. Larsson won four league titles in his seven years at Celtic. He also helped the team reach the 2003 UEFA Cup final against Porto, scoring both goals in a 3–2 defeat in extra time. His 242 goals in 313 matches saw Celtic fans nickname him The King of Kings.

Larsson played for Sweden in three FIFA World Cups and three UEFA European Championships, winning a bronze medal at the 1994 FIFA World Cup, and is a former captain of the national team. He ended his international career with 37 goals in 106 matches. He also won the Golden Ball (Guldbollen), the annual Award for best Swedish footballer twice, first in 1998 and again in 2004, while in 2003 he was named the Greatest Swedish Footballer of the Last 50 Years as part of the UEFA Jubilee Awards.