MIKAEL LUSTIIG does not believe his Celtic team-mates will fall for the mind-games of Scandinavian football’s very own Jose Mourinho.

Malmo manager Age Hareide has been doing a decent impression of the Portuguese since he was drawn against his old rival Ronny Deila’s team.

The usual stuff such as the pressure Celtic are under and Malmo being stronger have been aired – and Lustig has heard them all before.

It is impossible not to have come across the 61-year-old Hariede if you are in any away associated with football in his part of the word, such is his influence as a man and a coach. He remains the only man to have won the title in all four Scandinavian countries.

So when he talks, most people listen. Lustic, however, isn’t buying that the great man does believe Malmo are any way favourites.

Lustig said: “I know Hariede quite well. He was in Norway when I was there and he was also the manager of Helsingborgs when they played Celtic.

“I like him as a personality. You can see it in Mourinho as well. Sometimes he wants to speak to his players through what he says in the media. He wants to make sure his players are confident.

“That is part of the game. He wants to show respect to Celtic, but I think his aim is also to show his players they should not be afraid and that they should go out there with confidence.

“Some coaches and managers are like that. They want to make sure their players have confidence and say that the team they are going to face are not that good etc. It’s part of the game and it’s his way to be a manager.”

Lustig’s own manager, Ronny Deila, agrees with his player that Hareide might make good copy, but that along does not win football matches. Just look how Chelsea have started this season.

Asked whether Hariede was, to use a local expression, at it, Deila said: “He has to answer for that. I really believe in my team. We will see on Wednesday night who is going to be right.

“We have gone several months now without losing games, we are getting better and better. I’m really looking forward to this and believe we have a very good chance.”

Swedish football has changed. The level is higher than a few years ago and the crowds at some of the bigger clubs have increased ten-fold.

Gone are the days of part-time football and the star striker leaving his proper day job as an accountant to score goals in the Champions League that very evening.

Lustig revealed: “It’s always been a really tight league. Malmo have won two in a row and that has not happened for more than 10 years. At the start of the season there’s always five or six teams who are talked about as having the chance to win the title.

“It’s important for Swedish football for teams like Malmo to get into the Champions League and get some money. It helps give them an advantage on the other teams the following season.

“We have seen the standard getting better and the fans have got behind the teams. There is AIK and Malmo, but there are five or six teams who are getting 20,000 every week.”

The good news for Celtic is that their Swedish international has a superb record when it comes to taking on clubs from his country.

The right-back said: “Back home they are used to me facing Swedish teams. I’ve done it twice with Rosenborg and now this is a third time with Celtic.

“At Rosenborg we beat AIK in the Champions League and then Djurgarden in the Europa League. Of course we also beat Helsingborgs and Elfsborg.

“It’s been so far so good and hopefully we’d get the same result this time. It’s always special when you go abroad to play a team from your own country.”

Lustig is still far from fully fit. His ankle does not allow him at the moment to play two games in a week. But there was no way he was missing this one.

He said: "Of course, the European nights are always special. Once you play in them, you want to do it again and again.

"I’ve missed some big games because of injury. Just now, there are a little bit of nerves but I think that’s a good thing.

"As I said, once you have been involved in these games you want to be there again.

"I’m still being careful in terms of my fitness. I played two games in midweek and the weekend when I played against Partick Thistle after the Qarabag match. But then I took a week’s break.

"Hopefully, it is getting better and better. Maybe in a couple of months, I should be able to play all the games.

"There is still some pain after the games because my foot is still swollen. If you get a knock on it or something then it can swell up even more. I have to be careful, but so far so good."

That's twice he said that. Lustig will hope the saying remains true at 9.30pm this evening.