Celtic manager Gordon Strachan tried to play down the Hoops' crucial Champions League clash against Manchester United by claiming he has been involved in bigger matches - including Saints' 2003 FA Cup fianl.

The Bank of Scotland Premier League champions lost 3-2 at Old Trafford in the first Group F match but followed it up with home wins over FC Copenhagen and Benfica.

However, a 3-0 defeat in Lisbon has left the Parkhead side's chances of qualifying for the knockout stages for the first time, in the balance.

Victory over United will go a long way to helping Celtic create history but the former Saints and Coventry boss said: "It's one of the most exciting matches I've been involved in but it's not the biggest, that's for sure.

"It will be a great occasion, fantastic, but if you ask me if it is the biggest game then I will say no.

"Is it the most exciting? Possibly.

"There's been a few games where I've been under a lot of pressure and the pressure has been completely different from this.

"The FA Cup final against Arsenal in 2003 was a big one.

"You are taking a whole town along to Cardiff and you want to put on a half-decent show against one of the best teams in the world.

"That was pressure but this is a bit different, this is a nicer pressure."