What sets the Swede apart from most footballers of the modern era was not just his success on the field, but his humility off it.

An intelligent striker with astonishing goal records at his hometown club Helsingborgs, Celtic and Sweden, Larsson turns 44 on Sunday.

He is most revered for his performances for Celtic and then Barcelona but his start to life in Scotland couldn’t be more different to how it ended. He gave the ball away for Hibernian’s second in a 2-1 defeat on his debut. But his 242 goals in 315 appearances went some way to making up for that error.

When Larsson left for Barcelona in 2004, it was clear he’d left an indelible mark during his seven-year stint – his nutmeg and lob against Rangers a particular highlight. Injuries affected his stay at Barca but he’d win the Champions League and La Liga double in 2006 before returning to Sweden.

1951: Guy Lafleur, the first player in the NHL to score 50 goals and 100 points in six straight seasons (64).

1981: Feliciano Lopez, Spanish tennis player who is second for consecutive majors appearances (34).

1984: Brian Joubert, French figure skater who was 2007 World champion and a three-time European champion (31).

1985: Ian Desmond, shortstop for the Washington Nationals of MLB and third-round pick in 2004 (30).