Believe it or not, it is approaching almost 30 years since Celtic legend Henrik Larsson walked through the doors at Celtic Park.
Joining the club from Feyenoord on 25 July 1997 for a fee of just £650k, he is regarded as arguably the greatest foreign import in Scottish football history after scoring 242 goals in just 315 appearances for the Hoops - he was dubbed the King of Kings for a reason and is worshipped by the Celtic faithful 20 years after he left the club for Barcelona.
One of the club’s greatest ever players, Larsson won five Scottish Premiership titles, two Scottish Cups and two Scottish League Cups during his time with the club, while he was named Scottish Premier League Golden Boot winner five times, SFWA Footballer of the Year twice, SPFA Players' Player of the Year twice, European Golden Boot winner and was named as a UEFA Golden Player in 2003.
His love for Celtic is just as big as the club’s love for him, so we look on the best quotes from the Swedish striker about his love for the Hoops fans and his ‘life changing’ move to the East End of Glasgow.
!["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 for giving me that opportunity when maybe other clubs didn’t believe in me. This is where I got back into the Swedish national team an went on to play in European Championships and World Cups for Sweden. I couldn’t have done that without Celtic.”](https://www.thestar.co.uk/jpim-static/image/2022/03/07/14/GettyImages-50886609.jpg?crop=3:2&trim=&width=800)
1. On his gratitude to Celtic...
"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 for giving me that opportunity when maybe other clubs didn’t believe in me. This is where I got back into the Swedish national team an went on to play in European Championships and World Cups for Sweden. I couldn’t have done that without Celtic.” | Getty Images Photo: Getty Images
!["I think, as long as I'm in this line of work, I'm always going to be mentioned when Celtic are looking for a new manager."](https://www.thestar.co.uk/jpim-static/image/2024/04/30/12/45/4301913-1.jpg.jpg?crop=3:2&trim=&width=800)
2. On being Celtic manager...
"I think, as long as I'm in this line of work, I'm always going to be mentioned when Celtic are looking for a new manager." | SNS Group Photo: SNS Group
!["I didn't have a clue how big a club Celtic were when I joined."](https://www.thestar.co.uk/jpim-static/image/2024/05/11/11/47/GettyImages-2152448568.jpg.jpg?crop=3:2&trim=&width=800)
3. On the size of Celtic as a club...
"I didn't have a clue how big a club Celtic were when I joined." | Getty Images Photo: Getty Images
!["Celtic looks like a very good club, so I think it is going to do good for my development as a player and as a human being. I know about the rivalry between the two clubs; it is known worldwide. I will play my best here and I hope the team will play very good, then we have a chance to prevent them [winning 10 titles in a row]"](https://www.thestar.co.uk/jpim-static/image/2023/07/24/13/b25lY21zOjY5YTYxMGZiLWM3ZjAtNDc1NS1hOGMzLTI0ZWZhOGU0YzM0YzpiYWVjM2Y5YS02MDQ4LTQ2MDYtOTFhMC0xZWVlZTBkZTFkNGE.jpg?crop=3:2&trim=&width=800)
4. On the day he moved to Celtic Park...
"Celtic looks like a very good club, so I think it is going to do good for my development as a player and as a human being. I know about the rivalry between the two clubs; it is known worldwide. I will play my best here and I hope the team will play very good, then we have a chance to prevent them [winning 10 titles in a row]" | The Scotsman Photo: The Scotsman