Mar tin O’Neill shares what Henrik Larsson privately admitted to him about Celtic and Barcelona

Mar tin O’Neill shares what Henrik Larsson privately admitted to him about Celtic and Barcelona

Martin O’Neill and Henrik Larsson are two of the biggest Celtic legends of the modern-day era.

Between them both, they helped Celtic through one of the most successful domestic and European periods of their history since the Lisbon Lions.

Winning the first treble in 2001 since the Jock Stein era, O’Neill and Larsson helped end Rangers’ domination of Scottish football to kickstart what we are currently witnessing to this present day.

But there was one trophy that both of these living legends couldn’t get their hands on and it is one that still haunts them to this day. The 2003 UEFA Cup.

Getting to their first major European Final since 1970, Celtic went to Seville that year with great hope that they could lift the UEFA Cup.

With Chris Sutton, Paul Lambert, Neil Lennon and, of course, Larsson in the team, that Celtic side had taken on the might of Liverpool, Blackburn and Stuttgart to get to that final.

Unfortunately, they couldn’t do enough to get past Jose Mourinho’s Porto and despite Larsson bagging a double, Celtic lost the final 3-2 in extra time.

It was a painful end to one of the best memories as a Celtic fan that I can remember and O’Neill has just shared what Larsson would have been willing to sacrifice if it meant that Celtic had won the UEFA Cup in 2003.

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O’Neill said [PLZ Soccer], “It was not that long ago that I was speaking to Henrik Larsson and Henrik’s won the Champions League with Barcelona.

Photo by Team 2 Sportphoto/ullstein bild via Getty Images

“He made a big impact in the game, come on and I was there at the match cheering him on and he said he would have given that up to have won the UEFA Cup with us at Celtic.

“That’s massive.”

That just shows you how much Larsson still holds Celtic dear to his heart. The fact that he would give up the biggest prize in club football to be successful in Europe in the green and white hoops speaks volumes of the player.

It’s why the Celtic fans love him still to this day.

Ian Wright Celtic history leaves Gary Neville gob-smacked as Roy Keane delivers savage one-liner

Arsenal legend Wright spent four months at Parkhead after being signed as a short-term replacement for injured Henrik Larsson

STICK TO FOOTBALL QUIZ WITH PADDY MCGUINNESS

It goes without saying that Ian Wright’s best years were well behind him when the Arsenal legend pitched up at Celtic Park in 1999.

So much so that close pal and Manchester United legend Gary Neville didn’t even know he played for the Hoops! It’s a period in history that Celtic fans would rather erase from memory, and that’s why Wright’s short stint in Glasgow was a forgettable one.

Following Henrik Larsson’s horror leg break in Lyon, boss John Barnes turned to his ex-England teammate by signing the striker from West Ham on a short-term deal. A player in the twilight of his career and living on past glories, it’s fair to say Wright’s time at Parkhead didn’t go to plan as he scored just three times and came on as a second-half sub during that infamous Scottish Cup defeat to Inverness Caley Thistle.

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Barnes paid the price with his job that night and it wasn’t long before Wright followed him out the door, returning south with Burnley where he eventually pulled the curtain down on his impressive career.

Best known for his iconic years at Crystal Palace and Arsenal, Wright’s association with Celtic left Neville gob-smacked as the Stick to Football pundit and sidekick Jamie Carragher were asked by quiz host Paddy McGuinness to list the clubs the goalscoring frontman played for. After Liverpool hero Carragher answered Celtic, astonished Neville turned to Wright and exclaimed: “You went to Celtic?”

Before Wright could get a word in, devilish Roy Keane – who also spent a short spell at Parkhead – immediately dished out a savage one-liner and teased: “He was up there… he didn’t play, did he?”

Justifying his move to Celtic, Wright explained: “I had a period of my career where I was bouncing from one club to another trying to finish in 2000.”

The 60-year-old added: “I played for Nottingham Forest for a month’s loan before I went to Celtic. So it was Palace, Arsenal and West Ham. Then Forest on loan, Celtic and Burnley. I had four clubs in one season, you can’t do that anymore. Me and Harry Redknapp didn’t get on so he blew me out at West Ham. I went on loan to Forest, then Henrik Larsson got injured so I went to Celtic.

“It all went wrong, Barnesy was there, then I went to Burnley to finish it off and we got promoted. It’s a beautiful story.”

You can watch the full Stick to Football episode in the video player above.

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Join Football Scotland’s Celtic WhatsApp community!

Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our Celtic WhatsApp community today.

You’ll receive daily updates on breaking Hoops news as well as the top headlines from Parkhead.

No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Football Scotland team.

All you have to do is click here if you’re on mobile, select ‘Join Community’ and you’re in!

If you’re on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click ‘Join Community’.

We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like.

To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose ‘exit group’.