RINO GATTUSO insists he was happy to walk away from Parkhead with a scoreless draw as he feels AC Milan will finish the job in Italy.

The former Rangers midfielder grafted to make sure Celtic didn't pick up the victory Gordon Strachan hoped would hand them the advantage going into the second leg in a fortnight's time.

He said: "We have made sure we didn't lose the game. Celtic are a strong team at home and not losing the game means we will go through if we beat them back in Milan.

"We feel we can do it. Celtic aren't as strong when they play away from home and we are always confident at the San Siro.

"We also know we can play better than we showed last night, and we will have players back. So hopefully we can perform to a higher standard in the return leg. We had a couple of chances to score and I had one opportunity myself, but we didn't take them.

"But we are looking forward to the next game. It will be another difficult one for us, but we feel we can win and continue towards the next stage."

That view was echoed by AC Milan captain Paolo Maldini who warned Celtic they will face an even more formidable team at the San Siro next month.

Maldini - who made his 100th Champions League appearance last night - reminded Strachan's men that some big names will come back in for his side.

Ronaldo may be cup-tied, but Clarence Seedorf and Filippo Inzaghi should be back from injury, along with Marco Borriello who was banned for the trip to Glasgow.

"We had some problems with the strikers, but hopefully we will have some players back for the return," said Maldini.

"We will be better and, of course, we are confident we can win the tie."

Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink came through an injury scare to partner Kenny Miller up front, but neither player converted the chances they created.

Celtic's other main threat was Shunsuke Nakamura, but his famous free-kicks failed to penetrate down a stubborn Milan defence, led by Maldini.

The veteran defender, 38, reckons goalkeeper Zeljko Kalac had a reasonably quiet night and he predicts a far busier shift for Celtic's Artur Boruc in the return leg.

He said: "We knew that it would be a tough game. We deserved the draw and now we will have more chances at home.

"We didn't suffer too much and their strikers didn't give our goalkeeper too many saves to make." Boruc's blast for silly' Gilly's dive

ARTUR BORUC dismissed as "silly" Alberto Gilardino's desperate attempt to con the ref into giving AC a penalty last night.

The Milan striker dived three strides after being tackled by Boruc and Mark Wilson, and referee Terje Hauge gave him a yellow card.

Boruc, on his 27th birthday, said: "He dived after running for about three yards, so it was a little bit silly. I didn't think it was a penalty."

Boruc had already thwarted Gilardino, spreading himself to deflect a shot and keep his record of never having lost a goal in his five home Euro ties.

"That's my job, it's what I have to do and sometimes I am lucky," he said, and added: "It was a good chance for us to beat Milan.

"But our self-belief was probably a little bit less than usual. It's in our heads. If you're positive before the game it is easier on the pitch. We can do better."