Parkhead comeback for Larsson

By Mark Sylvester

After seven years at the club which saw him scoop four Scottish titles, two Scottish Cups and three Scottish League Cups as well as 173 goals and an appearance in the 2002/03 UEFA Cup final, Henrik Larsson had his share of success with Celtic FC.

Quick return
Having left the club this summer to join FC Barcelona, the Swedish international striker, who will celebrate his 33rd birthday on 10 September, may have been expecting to make a few visits to his old stamping ground once his career was over. However, he will not have anticipated returning to Parkhead so soon.

Hard ride
With Barcelona being paired alongside Celtic as well as AC Milan and FC Shakhtar Donetsk in their UEFA Champions League group, Larsson will be coming face to face with his old team-mates twice in the coming months, and he is certainly not expecting an easy ride when he travels back to Glasgow.

'A tough draw'
"It's amazing that Barcelona have been drawn against Celtic, the team I was with for seven very happy years," he told uefa.com. "The first thing I thought was 'that's a tough draw'. To be honest my initial reaction wasn't so much about me as the fact that Barcelona have two tough games against a very good team."

Recent meetings
Barça have already had a taste of what to expect from Celtic after the two sides met in the fourth round of last season's UEFA Cup. Alan Thompson's strike for Celtic in the first leg at Parkhead proved to be the only goal of the tie as the Scottish champions reached the quarter-finals. "I know what the atmosphere can be like at Parkhead," said Larsson. "Barça experienced it last year when Celtic knocked them out of the UEFA Cup."

Larsson factor
Larsson's goals were a major factor in Celtic's European successes in recent years but the striker remains convinced that, even without his talents, Martin O'Neill's side can still pack a punch. "Celtic have had a few years of European experience and they will be well prepared for these games," he said.

Mystery men
"Obviously I know a lot of the players, but you never know how a team will play on the night and what system they will adopt," added the Swede, who played at UEFA EURO 2004™ this summer. "We'll just have to wait and see. All I can say to my Barcelona team-mates is that it will be difficult.

Juninho arrives
"One thing I'm sure of is that my old team will be strengthened by the arrival of Juninho," he continued. "That's a great buy for them and I think he will be an important player at Celtic Park. He has the sort of qualities that can really work at Celtic and I'm sure he'll be a real success there."

Iconic status
The former Middlesbrough FC man has taken up Larsson's old No7 shirt after joining the club, but it seems unlikely that the Brazilian will be able to eclipse the Swede's iconic status at Celtic. However, Larsson has yet to give any thought to how he will be greeted when he returns to Glasgow.

Odd feeling
"I don't know what sort of reaction I will get at Celtic Park," he said. "That is something I'm not thinking too much about. It might be strange going back but at the moment I want to concentrate on the league and working on fitting in at Barcelona."

Henrik Larsson's personal website is at www.icons.com