NEIL LENNON today insisted he feels no pressure ahead of the crunch Champions League tie against AC Milan.

It is a must-win game for the Hoops tomorrow, but he wants his players to throw off any psychological shackles and play with freedom.

Lennon believes that will be the best way to achieve the result they need to keep alive their dream of successive appearances in the last 16.

He has every faith in his players embracing the challenge rather than fearing it, and said: "It will be like a cup final for us, and it's a brilliant game to be involved in. I am sure that, naturally, there will be a little bit of nerves.

"But there shouldn't be any anxiety about the game. They should be wanting to go and play with freedom, with the shackles off and have a go."

Lennon trusts that his Bhoys can draw on the experience gained in last year's successful qualification from their group.

Having been over the course before as a manager, he certainly feels better-equipped to deal with everything such a big game brings.

"I don't feel pressure going into this game," said Lennon. "Let's have a go at it. "Let's really play with a bit of freedom and try and win the game. We will give it everything we have got."

Celtic will still be without captain Scott Brown and a man who would have been in contention to replace him in midfield, Nir Biton, as both complete their Champions League suspensions.

Georgios Samaras and Emilio Izaguirre will be ruled out of the final game, in Barcelona, if they pick up another booking tomorrow night.

But, Lennon wants no-one to hold back and is confident the team he selects can recover from the major disappointment of the defeat against Ajax on matchday four.

"We will have James Forrest back fresh, Mikael Lustig fresh and Anthony Stokes fresh," said the manager. "They will obviously add extra impetus to the way we play."

Lennon was delighted by the way his players refused to be distracted by this pivotal match and retained focus against Aberdeen at the weekend.

They refused to settle for a point, scoring two late goals to maintain their five-point lead at the top of the SPFL with more than a third of the season now gone.

The Dons made life very tough by defending deep and in numbers, relying on breakaways.

Milan could adopt similar tactics: "But the environment will be different," said Lennon. "The atmosphere will be different. The culture of the game will be different, as well.

"I don't think the crowd will get frustrated. There is an expectancy to beat Aberdeen at home. There's maybe not so much to beat AC Milan at home. So, the crowd will have to play their part, as well."