Rae's say: Hail to Henrik
Just how good is Henrik Larsson? I know we've been pondering this vexed question for as long as the Swede first came to prominence with Celtic.
However, I'm beginning to think it's a debate worth re-opening.
Supporters of the Scottish champions have grown largely immune to the ignorant taunts of callers to radio programmes from south of the border. These people have been phoning BBC Radio's Alan Green for years, rubbishing Larsson's goalscoring achievements and proclaiming that he would get quickly found out in the Premiership.
We'll likely never find out if Fratton Park, Craven Cottage and the Reebok Stadium are as much to his liking as Pittodrie, Tannadice and Easter Road.
There are though, a couple of recent events which speak volubly for the argument that Larsson belongs amongst the elite strikers of his generation in world football.
For starters, would such a special club as Barcelona, in the middle of a £45 million summer spending spree go after a 32-year old striker to lead their attack if they had any doubts about his place in the overall scheme of things? Within minutes of Barca's first home match of the season at Racing, it became crystal clear that Henrik Larsson belonged on the same pitch as fellow high-profile new boys, Deco, Giuly and Eto'o.
That Larsson moved seamlessly into the next chapter of a glittering football career, would have come as no particular surprise to the Celtic supporters who saw him bang in 242 goals in 315 competitive games for the Parkhead club.
Larsson's return to his old stamping ground for UEFA Champions League duty on Tuesday produced much pandemonium in the west of Scotland, starting with his arrival at Glasgow airport. For once, Ronaldinho had no need to worry about being engulfed by television and radio microphones. This was King Henrik's courtyard.
The Swede has always, of course, been very much the reluctant monarch with little interest in celebrity or the trappings of fame. Those of us who have sat down for one-on-one interviews with Larsson frequently find one particular tendency of his, rather unnerving.
I'm referring to his habit of shunning direct eye contact while answering questions, looking off to one side instead. You quickly get the picture that it's not that he's being impolite. Essentially an introvert, Henrik Larsson simply prefers to let his football, rather than his mouth do the talking.
It was exactly that way earlier this week. After coming on as a substitute midway through the second half, the 'magnificent seven' helped turn the tide in favour of his new club and at the expense of his old one.
Larsson had a hand in the creation of Ludovic Giuly's second goal and then accepted a gift from Alan Thompson, who seemed momentarily to forget which side his erstwhile teammate was on.
Yet even more striking than Larsson's clinical contribution was how badly Celtic missed him.
Martin O'Neill's men looked ordinary for much of their first European match post-Larsson. People at the club know deep down that without his hefty contributions, there would have been no trip to Seville for the UEFA Cup Final sixteen months ago and probably less domestic silverware.
If none of this hits home with English doubters, consider the positive impact Larsson had on Sweden when he came out of international retirement to play for them at Euro 2004. Just as at the 2002 World Cup, the super Swede demonstrated that he deserves to be mentioned in the same sentence as the best strikers in the world.
So, let's forget any notion that Larsson has an asterisk against him through not having performed in the Premiership, shall we? The last time I checked, Van Basten, Shevchenko and Ronaldo have never played in England's top flight.
Henrik Larsson has nothing to prove to anyone.
