Former Celtic defender Enrico Annoni believes that Ronny Deila's side are well placed to take advantage of an Inter Milan side that he doesn't believe are the formidable outfit they were under Jose Mourinho.

Under "the special one" Inter became only the sixth club - and the first in Italy - to win the league, cup and Champions League in the same season.

But since then there has been a humiliating fall from grace that has seen the club stutter aimlessly to where they now languish midway down the table in Serie A.

In the last three seasons they have finished in sixth, ninth and fifth position.

After a harrowing few months, Roberto Mancini's side have managed to win their last two successive games - and win relatively comfortably - but they arrive in Glasgow with the same sense of invincibility that they carried only recently.

Yet, for all that Inter Milan may arrive with their pride bruised by recent tumultuous seasons, they remain a team of considerable resources.

And there is no question that this game presents Deila with the biggest test of his time so far at Celtic.

Annoni, though, has insisted that there will never be a better time for the Parkhead side to beat the team they so famously beat to record the greatest ever result in Celtic's history in Lisbon in 1967.

"I do think Celtic can have the chance to get passed Inter Milan because right now it is not the Inter of few years ago," said Annoni.

"In Italy, when the draw was first made everyone thought that there would be every chance for Milan to win.

"No-one thought that they would have too many problems. But it has been different because Milan have struggled so much.

"They have got better in the past few games but now people think that maybe it will not be so easy for them.

"They are not so very confident and they do not really have that strong winning mentality that Inter have always had."

For the first time in eight months, Celtic Park is a sell-out ahead of the visit of the Serie A side.

The vaulted opposition, the capacity crowd and the widespread interest in the game lends the match the gravitas of a Champions League evening.

Sobering, though, for Celtic is the fact that Milan's domestic struggles mean they will take this game much more seriously than the other big names still in the tournament at this stage for it now represents their best way into securing a place in next season's Champions League.

For that, Annoni expects that it will be the strongest team available to Mancini.

While the household names of Samuel Eto'o, Wesley Sneijder, Thiago Motta, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Patrick Vieira have long gone, Annoni does think that the signings Mancini made in the January transfer window have added some strength to Inter.

Xherdan Shaqiri has been favoured over Lukasz Podolski for the last-32 game, while Marcelo Brozovic has also been added to Mancini's squad.

And while Annoni has seen the squad improve, he still thinks that there are problems Celtic are capable of exploiting.

"They look better, more fluent in attack," he said. "But they still have to work on the amnesia that they have in defence. They are still not quite there yet.

"They have signed good players and they look like a better team because of it but they still have weaknesses. The defence does not look convincing yet.

"It will be up to Celtic to see if they can exploit any of the chances they get - but I do think they will get at least two or three chances in the game. If they can take them, then who knows?

"They have had some very good results over the years at Celtic Park against some of Europe's biggest teams.

"It is a special place to play and with all of the fans inside, it is always a good feeling for the players. It will be exciting.

"I think they have a small chance."

Mancini's first spell in charge at Inter was hugely successful, although many have pointed out that the budget he had at his disposal then is not the same as the one he currently has.

Mauro Icardi, the 21-year-old Argentine striker, is regarded as the club's most saleable asset and has been linked with a move to Chelsea this summer.

But, for all that the Italian has struggled since his return to the club in November, Annoni has maintained that there is still faith that he is the man to lead the team forward.

"I think he is still loved by the Inter Milan fans and they have a lot of respect for him," said the Italian.

"They love him always for his time with the club before.

"At first he had a great impact and he seemed to get them organised quickly. But then they lost their way.

"Since the draw was made I have been hoping that they did not find it again until after February!"