‘Childhood hero’ - Celtic icon leaves ex-SNP leader in awe as he hails move to Parkhead as turning point of his career

Legendary Hoops striker Henrik Larsson says he will be eternally grateful to Celtic for taking a chance on him in 1997 when other clubs failed to acknowledge his incredible talents.

The Swedish forward, who remains one of Celtic’s most revered footballers of the modern era, appeared at a Q&A event in Glasgow earlier this week and was also in attendance for the Scottish champions’ clash with Belgian champions Club Brugge.

Former SNP leader Humza Yousaf was one of the notable names at the event and described meeting Larsson as an incredible experience.

He wrote: "They say you shouldn't meet your heroes, you will only be disappointed. Complete rubbish!

"I had the enormous pleasure of meeting my childhood hero Henrik Larsson last night. What a lovely gent, generous, thoughtful, and full of humility.

"Thank you Henrik for the memories."

Larsson, who is now a coach, arrived at Celtic in 1997 as something of an unknown quantity, but went to establish himself as one of the greatest ever players in the Glasgow side’s history.

Overall, he scored 174 goals in 221 league appearances for the Hoops - winning five Golden Boot awards, four league titles, two Scottish Cups and two League Cups while also reaching the UEFA Cup final in 2002.

The four-time Swedish footballer of the year, who remains the second-highest scoring player in the history of the UEFA Cup/Europa League, went on to enjoy a glittering career at Manchester United and Barcelona but claims it was the move to Celtic that really allowed him to flourish as he represented Sweden on 106 occasions.

"I’ll be eternally grateful to Celtic because they took a chance on me when other clubs didn’t. It was here where I became recognised as a player.

"It was here that I went on to play in European Championships and World Cups with Sweden. This is a club that believed in me and I’ll always remember that," he told Glasgow Live.

Larsson remains Celtic’s third highest goalscorer of all-time, behind only Bobby Lennox and Jimmy McGrory.