Stefan Johnasen has dismissed former Celt Chris Sutton's suggestion that the Hoops could beat Rangers "blindfold."

The teams go head-to-head in the League Cup semi-final at Hampden tomorrow afternoon with Celtic widely expected to steamroll over their oldest rivals.

However, Johansen is wary of taking the result for granted, and has warned that Celtic will not be caught off guard by the occasion.

"You are the first one telling me that and it's completely wrong," he said. "It's a cup game and they will be up for it. We haven't met in something like three years now and it will be a massive game and we just need to be ready for it and earn our chance to go to the final.

"I don't know if we are the favourites. Celtic-Rangers is always a tough game, and we know that. People talk about us being in the Premiership and they aren't, but it's a cup game and anything can happen. We will go out there and try to win the game and hopefully we can reach the final."

Tomorrow's game will be an entirely new adventure for Johansen, whose only experience of the fixture so far has been from an armchair.

"When I have seen it on TV it has been physical, but most games in Scottish football are like that, so I'm starting to get used to it," he said.

"Everybody says there will be a big attention on it, with the media and supporters. But it's fun, you like to play big games and this is a big one.

"You can feel in the city that a big game is coming up. You hear it wherever you go - you hear when you go to the grocery store. Even in Norway it is a big game. You can feel it has been getting a lot of attention.

"But our focus is on doing the best we can and prepare as well as we can, and we are on our way to doing that. We had a good session yesterday and we will have another session today, and it's going to be a really good game.

"I have watched it on TV in Norway. Thomas Rogne played. and there was a bit of attention on that. It's even a big game in Norway, you can see all the Norwegian journalists here today as well. It's one of the biggest games in the world."

Meanwhile, Scott Brown has welcomed the eyes of the world falling upon Scottish football once again.

"It is good for Scottish football because everyone all over the world will be watching and hopefully we can put on a show for them," he said. "Do we miss Rangers? Yes, on occasions like this. It is good to have the hype of the game and the fans having the banter between one another. "It is going to be a terrific occasion and everyone's counting down the days now. It will be exciting.

"Every Celtic-Rangers game, everyone relishes, especially on the big occasions going out in front of 50,000 fans at Hampden.

"The atmosphere as soon as you walk out on to that pitch, hairs stand up on the back of your neck."