Larsson still waiting for right offer

Henrik Larsson insists he will quit football after this summer’s European Championship if he does not receive an offer which meets his expectations.

The Celtic striker performed an extraordinary U-turn when he revealed he will come out of international exile to take part in Euro 2004 for Sweden, two years after announcing his retirement at that level.

The change of heart revived hope that Larsson may also reconsider his decision to walk away from Parkhead when his current deal expires at the end of the season but he has vowed to stand by his original plan.

Despite his imminent departure from the east end of Glasgow being public knowledge for some time, he has yet to receive anything more than casual enquiries.

Now Larsson has claimed he would rather hang up his football boots altogether than accept anything less than playing at the highest level.

He said: “If I do not have anything sorted before the European Championship…I will not talk to anyone during the championship, I will be focused on Sweden and we will see what happens.

“I may still quit after the European Championship if I do not get the move that I feel I want.

“It may be a waste but I don’t want to go somewhere and play as the lonely striker up front or play for a team that’s struggling against relegation. It’s not my game and I don’t want to do that.”

Larsson quit the international scene two years ago before coming out of retirement for one game to boost an injury-stricken Sweden’s chances of qualifying for Euro 2004.

The striker will be 33 in September and, despite plans to quit the game if he does not win a move to a club challenging for honours, he reckons the break from international duty has extended his playing career.

He said: “After the World Cup, I wanted to concentrate on Celtic and it felt great not to have to come back after international games and go straight into another game with Celtic.

“I think that saved me another one or two extra years of my career.”

Celtic club-mates Magnus Hedman and Johan Mjallby were among those who campaigned for Larsson’s return to the national fold and he expects his decision to resurrect his international career to be accepted as warmly by the rest of his Sweden team-mates.

He added: “I don’t feel bad about coming back into the squad and it won’t be a problem with the other players.

“I know most of the boys there and I know from that that they won’t have anything against me.

“If anyone does has anything against me, they should speak out and get it out in the open but I would be very surprised.”