“They have world-class players that are used to winning the biggest prizes, so they know the level and they’re really comfortable at the level.

“We have to do more to get the result but we’re ready for that and we’re in a good place as a team.

“Hopefully a game like this will be another catalyst for our improvement.

“You look at the front two players with Alvaro Morata and Antoine Griezmann. They are top talents and this is a team that knows its way around European football because of the quality and experience they have.

“We know the challenge, they are a team fighting for the Spanish title.

'But we need to play with that courage and see if we can pose them some problems.'

“That’s why you play as you want to be in these games. The players worked so hard last year to be here and you want to be competitive.”

The Celtic manager insists tonight is a crucial tie for the team if there are any ambitions of advancing into European football post-Christmas.

As he looks to get a result he will not sway from the attacking football that has worked so effectively on the domestic front and for much of the opening two European games so far.

He added: “Everyone wants us to have the ball when we play domestically but not have it in whenever we play in Europe.

“I actually think we will have a lot of the ball in terms of the way Atletico play, as they will press us in certain sectors of the game.

"But Diego always sets his team up to play in a lower block which makes it difficult to break through.

“We will still have a good amount of possession but we have to devise a plan to help us through and give them things to think about.

'We have to play how our fans expect us to play and that’s fighting and running with quality, that’s what I see as the style of Celtic.'

“You have to be in balance and we need to have a big concentration to defend against that quality.

“We want to be intense but we have to press the game with intelligence as well because they have top-level players.

“We will always go into every game to win. It’s important for us if we are going to progress then we have to take something, otherwise it’s a difficult challenge for us but I’m excited by it.

“We have shown, particularly in the Lazio game that we can create opportunities and our goal was a fantastic goal.

“It’s about having that collective mentality and a green and white block moving up the pitch with everyone together. If we can do that and keep that concentration then we have a good chance against any team here at home.”

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