Celtic v Inter: Vidic expecting noisy reception

Nemanja Vidic knows to expect a fervent atmosphere when Inter visit Celtic in the first leg of the UEFA Europa League last 32 on Thursday.

Inter travel to Celtic in the UEFA Europa League last 32 on Thursday, and Nemanja Vidic is well aware of the raucous reception he and his team-mates will face in Glasgow.

Vidic has previous experience of playing at Celtic Park from his Manchester United days, meaning he is familiar with the electric atmosphere that the passionate home faithful can create.

Inter qualified from Group F of the Europa League with an unbeaten record, having won three and drawn three, but have stuttered domestically and lie 10th in Serie A, albeit with convincing back-to-back wins over Palermo and Atalanta to their name.

“I have played at Celtic Park before,” Vidic said. “The atmosphere they create is intimidating. I have been telling my Inter team-mates we must block out the noise we know the Celtic fans will create.

“If we let the atmosphere get to us we can lose focus – and you cannot afford to do that against a team of Celtic’s quality, especially when they’re playing at home.

“Throughout my career I have played in some really tough places in terms of the noise and the passion the fans create.

“Every game I have played in Turkey stands out for passion created by the fans – but the best has been at Celtic Park.

“There is no question on a big European night they are going to create a lot of noise – but we must be professional and mentally block it.”

The tie offers a reminder of Celtic’s finest moment in continental competition, when they lifted the European Cup in 1967 with a 2-1 victory over Inter in Lisbon.

Celtic’s current crop come into the game sitting top of the Scottish Premiership, holding a three-point lead over Aberdeen having played a game fewer.

Saturday’s 2-1 win at St Johnstone ended Celtic’s run of eight consecutive clean sheets, but manager Ronny Deila has cast aside any suggestions of a defensive approach against Roberto Mancini’s men.

“We always attack, so nothing is changing. Why should we do that?” he said.

“We are at home. We will be ourselves but we will know their weaknesses and strengths.”

The hosts have doubts over influential playmaker Kris Commons (hamstring), while defenders Mikael Lustig (ankle) and Charlie Mulgrew (knee) are set to miss out.

Inter will be without Jonathan (knee) and Yuto Nagatomo (thigh), while they also have concerns over Marco Andreolli (thigh), Hugo Campagnaro (calf) and Danilo D’Ambrosio (thigh).