Larsson was better than Johnstone......

Hmmm...tough call. Not helped by the fact that they played different roles. Henke was an out and out striker while Jinky was there to run the opposition ragged and set up guys like Wallace and Chalmers.
For example Henke’s lobbed goal against the huns was a thing of beauty while Jinky’s performance against Leeds in the EC semi at Hampden where he turned Cooper (rated best LB in the world) inside out and gave Hunter the same treatment when he tried marking him was a masterclass in wing play. For me this makes any such comparison impossible.
 
BarrowfieldBhoy said:
Hmmm...tough call. Not helped by the fact that they played different roles. Henke was an out and out striker while Jinky was there to run the opposition ragged and set up guys like Wallace and Chalmers.
For example Henke’s lobbed goal against the huns was a thing of beauty while Jinky’s performance against Leeds in the EC semi at Hampden where he turned Cooper (rated best LB in the world) inside out and gave Hunter the same treatment when he tried marking him was a masterclass in wing play. For me this makes any such comparison impossible.
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Ffs, just pick wan…..🤷‍♂️
 
Think every era threw up a special talent that everyone remembers only saw jinky in the later years of his career but what a talent as was
king kenny was a fantastic player scored some cracking goals but for me it has to be Henrik even though all of them could find that little bit of magic

I think Henrik gave us the most joy with the length of time he was here , the ultimate hunskelper a brilliant professional scored some fantastic goals and gave his all for the club

:cool: He also broke ma Ray Bans at east end park and never paid up
 
BarrowfieldBhoy said:
Hmmm...tough call. Not helped by the fact that they played different roles. Henke was an out and out striker while Jinky was there to run the opposition ragged and set up guys like Wallace and Chalmers.
For example Henke’s lobbed goal against the huns was a thing of beauty while Jinky’s performance against Leeds in the EC semi at Hampden where he turned Cooper (rated best LB in the world) inside out and gave Hunter the same treatment when he tried marking him was a masterclass in wing play. For me this makes any such comparison impossible.
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pick 6 ,,,,,nobody picks 1 on the noise
 
kelly said:
Think every era threw up a special talent that everyone remembers only saw jinky in the later years of his career but what a talent as was
king kenny was a fantastic player scored some cracking goals but for me it has to be Henrik even though all of them could find that little bit of magic

I think Henrik gave us the most joy with the length of time he was here , the ultimate hunskelper a brilliant professional scored some fantastic goals and gave his all for the club

:cool: He also broke ma Ray Bans at east end park and never paid up
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Ray Bans?ya wee blouse
 
I think it's a debate that Celtic supporters of a certain vintage have been privileged enough to witness both of these world class football legends.
Jinky could win a game all on his own and was the ultimate showman.
So many games to reference when he did just that ...even after we won the big cup we were invited to play in the great De Stefano's testimonial in Madrid only for Jinky to steal the show in front of 120 thousand with "Ole " every time he touched the baw.
The wee barra liked a bevvy and a burger and it was a different era but Henke was just different class and the ultimate professional who won us so many trophies that we wouldn't have if he wasn't in the team. Skill goals team ethic commitment humble and the best foreign player ever at Celtic and on these shores.
Both gave us so much joy and difficult to seperate as magnificent 7's.
But Henke is the King of Kings for a reason. Love them both equally though. 💚
 
Spherical Planet said:
Like yourself, Docco - Henrik was, by some clear distance, the greatest Celtic player I've had the good fortune to see in the flesh - and like your Da', my own Faither answered, almost as quickly, that Larsson was also his choice.

The logic behind his decision was also very similar to your own thoughts. Although Jinky was (without any doubt) a magnificent player, he was also helped by the fact that Celtic had one or two other world-class players who could share the load. Even those who were not world-class were still international-class and far superior to your average player, even in a golden age of Scottish football.

Henrik didn't always have that luxury and had to carry the team on his own on many occasions. Larsson was also an outstanding technical footballer and was so much more than just a goalscorer. I believe his best game for Celtic was the night Celtic destroyed a strong Lyon side at Parkhead and he never got a sniff of a goal. He just popped up left, right and centre and displayed a passing and crossing range that the French just could not cope with.

As far as goals go - he scored all types of goal: tap-ins, from distance, lobs, dinks and curlers, set-pieces and (man oh man) those headers.

I'm not going to lose much sleep over who was the better player, but Jinky himself waxed lyrical over Henrik and we also have to consider that Larsson went on to become a game-changer at Barcelona and also a significant cameo player on-loan at Man United.

I'm happy enough to know that Jinky is regarded as our greatest ever. I'm sure different generations might have opted for Jimmy McGrory, Patsy Gallagher or Charlie Tully, but for me - I feel privileged and blessed to have had the great fortune to watch Henrik Larsson and Celtic fans should be thankful that such great players have graced Our Hoops.

Now.........if only we got Lubo 5-years before we did???

Xxx

Wee edit here: I have to add, my Da' was convinced that George Connolly would have been regarded as the greatest ever Celt if he could have only conquered his own self-doubt and other well-documented issues.
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Without doubt George was one of the most naturally gifted players I’ve ever seen. Remember him playing keepie up as he ran around the track in front of a big crowd. Tragic what happened to him.
 
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