The chance to join Manchester United, albeit on a temporary basis, was an offer too good to turn down, Henrik Larsson has said.
The former Sweden international has signed a loan deal which will tie him to the club from the beginning of January to March 12th.
Currently on a week's training in Manchester prior to returning to Sweden for the Christmas period, Larsson is itching to get started.
His first game will probably be an FA Cup tie against an Aston Villa side managed by his old boss at Celtic Martin O'Neill on January 7th.
Having signalled the end of his career at Barcelona by winning the Champions League last May before joining hometown team Helsingborgs, it seemed unlikely Larsson would ever be seen in a major league again.
However, through an initial contact between United and Helsingborgs' Scottish coach Stuart Baxter, Larsson was presented with a belated opportunity to show off his talents on the Premiership stage.
"When I heard about this loan deal I just thought it was a chance I could not say no to," said Larsson, who cannot play against Newcastle on New Year's Day because his registration will not have been processed.
"I did have opportunities to move to the Premiership when I was at Celtic but my family was settled in Glasgow, which is the reason I did not come down.
"But I am 35 now, I do not think this opportunity will come around another time. I wouldn't get the chance to join such a big club again. I had to discuss the situation with my family but as soon as I had cleared it with them, there was no problem."
Larsson's family will join him for short spells during his time in England but it appears there is no chance the loan period will be extended.
It means Larsson will be available for seven Premiership games - including the trips to Arsenal and Liverpool - all FA Cup ties up to and including the quarter-final stage and both legs of the Champions League knock-out phase clash with Lille.
"It is difficult but Helsingborgs have been good to us with this deal and we have to be fair with them," said Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson. PA
