Forget Zlatan & Ronaldinho… Ex-Barca star Larsson picks Sutton as BEST partner

Henrik Larsson played alongside Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Ronaldinho during his stellar career - but identifies Chris Sutton as the best strike partner he ever had.

The Swede played in countless Old Firm derbies in his seven years in Glasgow, but insists he never 'hated' any Rangers players.

'I never hated anybody even if they were playing for Rangers or they played for Madrid or they played for Ajax. It's not for me, I just don't want to lose against them.

'I was willing to do what it takes to win. If that meant to kick somebody I would do that, because whenever you put on a jersey of any team you play for that has to be priority No 1 - winning.'

Larsson left Celtic for Barcelona in 2004, winning two La Liga titles in a two-year spell in the twilight of his career, culminating in a Champions League final victory over Arsenal in 2006.

'It was a dream come true, having the opportunity to play for one of the greatest teams in the world,' he admits.

But Larsson says he did not expect Messi to go on and have the unbelievable career he has had. Asked if he thought Messi would be that special when they played together, Larsson replied: 'No.'

He added: 'I remember the first time he went on a pre-season tour we did the first training session and I talked to Giovanni van Bronckhorst and said, "who's that guy?" (Van Bronckhorst said) "Oh he's Lionel Messi, he's from Barca B but he's going to be with us now".

'You saw the skills with his left foot and the pace he had and ability to score, but I couldn't dream that he could become as good as he is and as he has been the last 10 years, 12 years. He's just unbelievable.'