After his skills were eventually recognized by the rest of the world, Larsson—dubbed “The King” by Celtic fans—went on to play for Manchester United and Barcelona.
Larsson and Alan Stubbs, a former Celtic defender, played together for four years from 1997 to 2001 until the Liverpudlian joined Everton.
In terms of the greatest he’d ever had, Stubbs would have had Larsson at the top until he moved to Everton.
Wayne Rooney ranked above Celtic legend Henrik Larsson
However, just a year after joining Everton, he would play at Goodison Park with a young, extremely talented Wayne Rooney. According to Stubbs, Rooney is a better player than Larsson, which may seem confusing to some Celtic supporters. Stubbs recently appeared on The Warm-Up podcast, where he was asked to rank his top two players from his career by Steven Naismith. “I have Wayne at the top and really just below him is Larsson,” Stubbs said.
Larsson was exceptional. He made it look so easy for me to make passes as a center-back. He would simply move backwards to get there and then pull away. Luckily, his runs were so good that I would track him down. Nonetheless, I was pleased that he eventually left Celtic, presumably for a considerable amount of time, to join Manchester United and Barcelona, where his talent was acknowledged by both Scottish and foreign audiences.
Stubbs was also a huge fan of Lubo Moravcik
During that time, Lubo Moravcik, a Slovakian midfield maestro who joined Celtic from MSV Duisburg in 1998 at the age of 33, was another outstanding foreign talent.
He impressed the Celtic supporters during his four years at Parkhead with his amazing technical skill and free-kick ability.
In fact, Henrik Larsson reportedly remarked of Moravcik, “He is among the best players I have ever played with.” I’m still unsure as to whether he had a left or right foot.
22 April 2001: Following the Scottish Premier Division match versus Hearts at Celtic Park in Glasgow, Scotland, Celtic’s Lubomir Moravcik raises the title trophy. Celtic prevailed 1-0. Credit Required: Stu Forster/Allsport
Lubo was chosen by Stubbs, who shared a dressing room with him, as one of the best players he had ever played with.
He described Moravcik as “unbelievable.” Amazingly talented natural two-footed player. To tell the truth, he was a mechanic and a genius. The actions he took…
He was among those who were capable of anything. One of those extremely obnoxious gamers, do you know? Which foot—left or right, outside or inside—and, of course, the one where he used his ass to control it?
“We had no information about him. At the time, I believe he was signed by Jozef Venglos, so we were certainly unaware. But when he entered, he was simply amazing. He was a really good player, to be honest.
Lubo was one of the best players Stubbs had ever played with, and the two shared a changing room.
Regarding Moravcik, he remarked: “Unbelievable.” Unbelievable, the best natural two-footed player. To be honest, he was both a technician and a genius. The actions he took
He was one of those people who could do anything. Do you know a particularly obnoxious player? Left foot, right foot, outer foot, either foot, and, of course, the one where he used his ass to control it?
“We had no information about him. At the time, I believe he was signed by Jozef Venglos, so we were certainly unaware. But when he entered, he was simply amazing. He was a really good player, to be honest.
