Ronny Deila’s side will need to be guarded against the Italians, despite their fall from grace recently, as they still have the players to pack a punch and cause a problem for the Glaswegians this week.
Inter have hit seven goals in their past two Serie A games, winning both, so will be going into this tie in fine form and looking to snatch some valuable away goals.
They have the players to do it. Young, exciting players, capable of taking the game to the Scottish club, even though Arsenal loanee Lukas Podolski will not feature.
The German was left out of the squad for the competition by Mancini, so is unable to feature at Celtic Park on Thursday. Inter will, therefore, have to look elsewhere for goals and creativity, and there are players capable of providing it.
Inter are unbeaten in Europe so far this season, winning three and drawing three of their six group games, whilst Celtic lost their final two – but still qualified for the next round.
Here are three players that could damage the Scots’ chances of reaching the Round of 16.
Xherdan Shaqiri
The Bayern Munich loanee was included in Inter’s Europa League squad by Mancini, at the expense of Podolski, so will likely play a vital role for the Italians for the remainder of their time in the competition.
Shaqiri has been directly involved in three goals for the Italians in his five Serie A appearances since joining in January. No Inter player has come close to creating as many chances (13) during that short period, proving what a valuable asset he is to Mancini.
The Swiss international has also completed 70% of his take-ons (7/10) successfully in the league, so will look to build on that in Europe and run at Celtic’s backline to cause them problems.
Mateo Kovacic
Kovacic is quickly becoming one of European football’s brightest young talents, thanks to his energetic displays for Inter.
The 20-year-old central midfielder has created 41 chances in Serie A this season, at least 11 more than anyone else at Inter, showing what an important player he is for them going forward. The Croatian has scored four goals and registered one assist in his 22 appearances this term, starting 18 of them.
He has completed 65% of his take-ons successfully (a massive 64/99) and has a pass rate of 86%, dictating play from the centre of midfield before exploding forward on defence-penetrating runs to contribute goals for the Italians.
Mauro Icardi
The final player capable of really hurting Celtic is the highly-rated former Barcelona youngster Mauro Icardi.
The Argentinian striker has bagged 13 Serie A goals this season, putting him well ahead of Dani Osvaldo (five) in second place among Inter’s squad. He also has one assist to his name, domestically.
Icardi was less effective in the Europa League group stages (scoring once) than he has been in Serie A, but the Argentinian’s recent form suggests he will provide a more reliable outlet in attack during the knockout stages.
He has scored five goals in his six league appearances in 2015, creating four chances in the process.
No doubt a reflection of his talent, the 22-year-old is frequently linked with interest from the Premier League’s elite. Manchester United and Chelsea, specifically, are two clubs the Express claim are interested in signing Icardi, a report which also mentioned a whopping figure £30m.
There is no doubt that he Icardi the main threat to Celtic’s clean sheet on Thursday and how they deal with him – and the other two – will prove to be key to their success in the competition.