Knee blow for Larsson

Barcelona striker Henrik Larsson is likely out for up to six weeks with a knee injury.

The former Feyenoord and Celtic hit-man was forced to come off in the second half at Camp Nou with the knee problem before having a scan on Sunday to assess the extent of the injury.

The 33-year-old has now been told he needs an arthoscopic operation on his injured knee and that he is likely to be sidelined for up to six weeks.  

It means the Swedish marksman will miss Barca's final two UEFA Champions League group matches - including Wednesday's home clash with former club Celtic.

The news will come as a blow to Barca manager Frank Rijkaard, whose first team squad have been hit a spate of injuries, despite the club's fine form so far this season.

The Scandinavian marksman went on to explain how he picked up the injury during Barca's fine victory over arch-rivals Real Madrid.      

"When I injured it the first time, the knee cracked when I was moving sideways," Larsson told Sportbladet.

"We checked it at half time, it was a bit unstable, but it wasn't swollen.

"When I got the second blow, I felt it was best to go off."

Despite picking up the knee injury, the Scandinavian goalscorer was pleased with Saturday's result which put The Catalans seven points clear of bitter rivals Real at the top of La Liga.

"It was a fantastic atmosphere. Fun to play from the start," Larsson said. "We tactically played very well.

"We knew what we wanted and what we needed to do when we entered the pitch."

With former club Celtic losing to Old Firm rivals Rangers on Saturday, Larsson stated that both derby matches are hard to compare.

"It's two big matches, but still completely different," he said.

"It was really a nice experience to play in El Classico."