Henrik Larsson single-handedly destroy Arsenal and inspire
Barcelona to Champions League glory. Fergie had twice tried to sign
Larsson when the Swede was at Celtic but failed in his attempt to
convince one of Europe's most prolific goalscorers and most
intelligent players to move south of the border. And as he watched
Larsson come off the bench to wreck Arsenal's European Cup dream by
playing a key part in both Barcelona goals in their 2-1 win.
But yesterday, almost four years after he first tried to lure
Larsson to Old Trafford, Fergie finally landed the 35-year-old on a
short-term loan deal. The striker is eligible to play in Europe
this season, and the Manchester United boss described the move as
"a brilliant bit of business".
"In Henrik we've got a player who can change games," said
Fergie.
Larsson's decision to join United stunned the football world, not
least because he decided to leave Barcelona last summer in order to
see out his playing days at Helsingborg, the home town club where
he began his illustrious career.
Fergie himself admitted he had not given a move for Larsson a
moment's thought until United's chief scout Jim Lawlor was alerted
to the striker's potential availability during the Swedish winter
break by Helsingborg coach Stuart Baxter.
"When Henrik left Barcelona last summer, we were under the
impression he wanted to go back to Sweden, which of course he did,"
said Fergie. "But our chief scout is friendly with the Helsingborg
coach, and he mentioned to us about the prospect of taking Henrik
on loan during Sweden's winter break.
"We got in touch with the Helsingborg board of directors and were
fortunate enough to be able to agree a deal with them to get Henrik
on loan. Although Fergie steered clear of the comparison yesterday,
there are uncanny similarities between Larsson and former United
striker Teddy Sheringham in terms of their style and intelligent
reading of the game.
But where Larsson will be most effective for United is in
performing late cameo roles for games in which United are unable to
break down opponents and need a player with his vision and
goalscoring ability to make a breakthrough.
He is more than just a goalscorer, as Arsenal skipper Thierry Henry
pointed out in the aftermath of last season's Champions League
Final.
"People always talk about Ronaldinho and his magic, but I didn't
see him in this game," said Henry. "I saw Henrik Larsson. That's
where the magic was. Two times he came at us with those little
short runs. When he started buzzing around the box he changed the
game, that is what killed us.
"People talk about Ronaldinho and Samuel Eto'o for Barcelona, but
they need to talk about the proper footballer who made the
difference against us - Larsson."
And only last week, Ronaldinho was expressing his regret Barcelona
had failed to hold on to Larsson, the double World Player of the
Year describing the mercurial Swede as "my idol".
So if he's good enough for Henry and Ronaldinho, despite his
advancing years, surely Larsson will be good enough for Fergie and
United, perhaps proving as big a coup as the 1992 deal that saw
Eric Cantona join from Leeds.
'It's a brilliant bit of business. In Henrik we've got a player who
can change games.. he can play left, right, or through the middle
because he's an intelligent player'
