Henrik Larsson has backed his former Sweden teammate Zlatan Ibrahimovic to be a success at Manchester United.

Larsson moved to Old Trafford on loan towards the end of his playing career in 2006, and insists Ibrahimovic can take United back to the top at age of 34.

The ex-Juventus, Inter, Barcelona and Milan and Paris Saint-Germain star, who began training with United on Thursday, could make his debut against Galatasaray on Saturday, and Larsson expects him to impress.

"Zlatan is gigantic in Sweden," Larsson told United's official website. "He is the number one. Everyone knows of him and everyone knows about him. There are going to be a lot of people interested to see him as well.

"I think everybody has seen him play but, for a man that big to have the technique he has and the skills he has, it's a pleasure to watch. So I have to hope everything goes well now when he comes to Manchester United. Hopefully, he can bring United back to where it belongs."

Larsson also believes Ibrahimovic's age won't affect how he copes in the Premier League.

He said: "No, I don't think so. He's a fit guy. He takes care of his body so that won't be a problem.

"I hope everything goes well because United deserves it and he deserves every good thing that is happening to him. He's Sweden's biggest footballer ever and to see him join United, yes, it was a pleasure."

Now manager of Helsingborgs, Larsson agreed with fellow boss Jose Mourinho's belief that playing in England will be Ibrahimovic's biggest challenge.

"Yes, it is a huge challenge," he said. "It's one of the best leagues, if not the best in the world, and it has a lot of players with quality. So you need to perform week in and week out.

"There are also the English cups to play in and you want to be able to do something in Europe as well so there are going to be a lot of games. But, as I said, he's fit and he likes to train. You have got a great physical department at United as well so I'm sure everybody is going to make it happen in the best way possible for the club.

"What I remember of him, although it was a long time ago when we played, was that he used to train hard and train well. I expect he's still doing that, otherwise he wouldn't be able to play football at that level at that age."

Ibrahimovic labelled Larsson a "god" when playing alongside him, but the Celtic cult hero says the rise of the forward was not down to him.

Henrik Larsson and Zlatan Ibrahimovic in training with Sweden in 2006. SVEN NACKSTRAND/AFP/Getty Images

"We took care of all the new players when they came to the national team," Larsson said. "That is what the other players did for me when I first came and is what we tried to do all the time. It's common sense -- when you want to achieve good things together, you need to be together. I made sure with the others that he felt welcome when he came in and I think that is the way it should be, especially when you're playing in a team sport."

Although United's new star signing is a global icon, Larsson has attributed hard work as the reason for his success and fame.

He said: "I think when a footballer has reached a certain level it's not having somebody handing it to you but a question of work ethic from the player.

"He's been working hard and that is why he has got all the success and all the adulation from fans all over the world. I think [following individual players] is the way society is going with all the different kinds of access to the players. You have the internet and social media of course, and everyone can watch football every day. It's a lot easier to follow somebody's career now than it used to be."