Stephen McManus knows all about playing on the biggest stage in Europe.

With the first team welcoming Carlo Ancelotti’s reigning European champions on Tuesday night, it brings back memories of the last time the Italian manager was at Celtic Park, bringing the then Champions League champions AC Milan to Paradise and leaving empty-handed.

McManus scored on that special night when the Celts won 2-1 and now he will be passing on those top-level experiences to the young Hoops, who also kick-off their UEFA Youth League campaign on Tuesday.

Mirroring the first-team's schedule, they too host Real Madrid on Tuesday - at the Excelsior Stadium with a 3pm kick-off - and youth coach McManus believes the competition will be vital to his group.

He said: “It will be a massive learning curve but we believe we can go and win the game.

“We have some very good players and professionals with a lot of good attributes, so the boys have nothing to fear and the experiences from the Lowland League will stand them in good stead.

'We know how tough Real Madrid will be and I’ve no doubt we can cause them problems.'

“To be playing in the Youth League, you never usually get the opportunity to play against top European players at this age, so this gives them an opportunity to see where they are and test themselves against the best in Europe.

“With the games we have this year, there are different challenges and part of our job as coaches is to try and give the players as much experience so it prepares them for the first-team environment.

“There’s no better test than to play against the best teams in Europe and this is an opportunity as a group to see where they’re at.

“Ultimately the highlight of their career isn’t to play in the Youth League, their objective is to play in the Champions League and be a Callum McGregor or James Forrest and at this stage in their career it will be a valuable experience for them.”

With such a massive game on the horizon the support from you, the fans, could be crucial to helping the young Hoops over the line, with tickets still available.

The bigger the crowd, the more the young players can have experiences similar to the first team and while it’s set to be a huge game, McManus says the key is to keep the boys calm.

He added: “The boys are full of confidence, they are young lads so they are full of life and our job is to try and guide them on this path.

“When you’re a young player developing in your career, you will have bumps and we need to calm them down because it’s a fantastic opportunity.

'They will need to play with calmness, and enjoy the occasion, but in big games keep a level head and stay as cool as they can.'

“We try and play a certain way, nothing will change even though it’s a big game, we will be consistent no matter who we’re playing against.

“We’ve played some really good sides in the Lowland League and now we’re going to face some top opposition in the Youth League. The way we train and prepare is no different from what we have throughout.

“It will be a massive occasion for them but hopefully this is just the beginning of a lot of big European nights that they will experience in their career.”

McManus: There's no fear and we can cause Real Madrid problems