Celtic were last night forced to wait for a Uefa ruling as AC Milan sought to ensure next month's Champions League clash would go ahead under normal circumstances at the San Siro. Milan are pulling out all the stops, attempting to hurry through improvements and modernisation to the San Siro which they initially had predicted would take until October to complete.

They have been told new turnstiles must be installed before supporters can be admitted. Stadium officials have been given until Tuesday to convince Italian government authorities the San Siro, also home to Inter Milan, has been brought up to standards.

The famous stadium was one of 25 venues declared unsuitable to host spectators after security checks carried out this week, action arising from the death of policeman Filippo Raciti in crowd violence at last Friday week's Sicily derby between Catania and Palermo.

Rather than make a swift decision to relocate the March 7th second leg of the last-16 tie, Uefa are prepared to give the Italians more time to carry out improvements to their ground. However, the logistics of staging such a high-profile match means the saga cannot rumble on beyond the middle of next week, and the Stade de Geneve, in Switzerland, remains a fall-back option.

In a statement referring to Celtic's match in Milan, and Inter's Champions League home match against Valencia on February 21st, Uefa declared: "There is a possibility these could go ahead in Milan depending on work to be done at the stadium. Further information . . . is expected early next week after further evaluation of the stadium."

If Celtic's Champions League match is played behind closed doors, supporters who have booked on to the trip to Italy through the Parkhead club's official tour operator have been guaranteed a refund. The club and the travel company, Thomas Cook Sport, will also try to accommodate the Celtic fans if the match is moved to a neutral venue.