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"Premier" League leaders club in England will rent former Swedish national team striker Henrik Larsson for three months in January. The 35-year-old former longtime Glasgow Celtic player will leave his hometown club Helsingborg on January 1st and return on March 12th when the Swedish championship begins. "Man Utd" club had already eyed me after the first and second season at Celtic," said Swedish H. Larsson. - "It's great to come back and play for a famous club. Maybe I won't start every game, but it looks like it will be fun." At the moment, the senior Man Utd club coach Sir Alex Ferguson is lacking options upfront, as Norwegian Ole Gunnar Solskjaer hasn't yet recovered from injury and Alan Smith still hasn't found his form. This means that French national team striker Louis Saha and recently extended contract Wayne Rooney are currently the only capable strikers in the team. "I've always admired Larsson. I tried to buy him when he was still playing for Celtic, but then they managed to convince him to stay. He is a great player. It's a wonderful deal for us, inviting a player who can determine the matches," said S. Ferguson. "I know the players. I have competed against many of them, so it's nothing new. I hope the situation will be easier because I know many names and faces. I will go there to play as much as possible, but I can't imagine how they will use me. We'll see how much time I will get to show. Will I be a substitute? Yes, at first. Then you will see what I can do and how things will go. We haven't talked about the number I will be given. We'll see how it goes," said H. Larsson. The Swede left UEFA Champions League winner Barcelona last season and returned to his homeland to represent his hometown Helsingborg team. With his help, Helsingborg finished fourth in the Swedish championship and won the national cup. In the Barcelona club, the player spent two seasons and played a decisive role in last year's Champions League final held in May when he came on as a substitute and provided two assists, helping Barcelona to win against London's Arsenal. The longtime Swedish national team striker moved to Barcelona in 2004 after leaving the Scottish Celtic club, where he spent seven years. In the Celtic team, the striker was rated as one of the best players in the club's history. In the ranks of the Scottish team, the Swede scored 242 goals in 315 matches, while playing for Barcelona, he defeated the opponent's goalkeepers 21 times in 33 matches. Playing for the national team, he excelled in three World Cups (1994, when the Swedes finished third, as well as 2002 and 2006) and two European Championships (2000 and 2004). In total, Larsson wore the national team jersey in 93 matches and scored 36 goals. Former Celtic coach Martin O'Neill recently asked if he wanted to attract his former protege to the current Aston Villa team, said he had no personal contact with the striker. The coach and player will meet on January 13th next year at the "Old Trafford" fortress stadium in Manchester when Man Utd will face Aston Villa.
