Returning veteran Larsson 'will be a major influence'

At 36, Sweden striker Henrik Larsson is bucking the trend at Euro 2008 at a time when players are hanging up their international boots due to the increasing demands of the game.

After retiring twice from the international stage, the lure of another major finals and his son's wish to see him pull on the yellow jersey again proved too much to resist for the veteran scorer of 36 goals in 95 appearances for his country.

"My reasons for returning are well documented by now, but the main thing is that I feel good and I feel it is right for me," Larsson said at Sweden's lakeside training base at the foot of the Alps.

Amid a highly cluttered football calendar in which players find themselves sandwiched between domestic and international commitments, Larsson is becoming an exception to the rule.

"When I decided to retire I didn't think I would be still playing at this level and feeling so good," Larsson said. "But I think everybody has the right to make their own decisions. I have made [mine] and made the reasons well known."

Larsson, who now plays with his hometown club Helsingborgs, is not the oldest player at Euro 2008. That honour falls to Austrian forward Ivica Vastic, who is two years older. But since Vastic is no longer first choice for the co-hosts, the Swede could be the oldest player to start a match when Sweden face Greece in Group D tomorrow.

Voted Sweden's best player of all time, Larsson was a late and surprise inclusion in Lars Lagerback's squad after his second retirement following Sweden's exit from the World Cup in 2006. "He is in the side on merit and deserves to be here," Lagerback said. "He is a massive player for us and will be a major influence in the squad."

Striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who last scored for Sweden in October 2005, said on Friday he hoped Larsson would be picked as his partner to help him end his long goal drought.

Many players mentioned Larsson's sharpness in front of goal, while others pointed to his influence off the pitch. Defender Daniel Majstorovic said: "He has a great personality and takes care of the younger players. He is a player we all trust and we ask for advice."

Captain Fredrik Ljungberg said Larsson "has managed to adapt his style, which makes him as important to us as ever".

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