Celtic confidence is sky high

CELTIC manager Martin O’Neill declared last night that his stars are as buoyant as he could wish for ahead of Thursday’s UEFA Cup semi-final second leg tie in Portugal.

He had feared their last-gasp defeat at Hearts on Saturday could have hit his players' confidence but allayed those concerns after flying into Portugal yesterday, claiming his stars cannot wait for the showdown at the Bessa Stadium.

"The nerves are okay," said O'Neill. "We are fine and we're looking forward to it.