Hoops brace for further UEFA punishment

At the Stadio Friuli, before the 1-1 draw which saw Neil Lennon's side exit the tournament, a two-part banner insulting UEFA was unfurled by the travelling fans and there were several flares set alight, one of which was hurled onto the pitch-side running track.

The Parkhead club were last week fined £12,700 ($A19,811) by UEFA after its supporters were reported for "illicit chanting" in a previous Europa League fixture against Rennes in Glasgow and expect to be brought to book again.

Lennon, along with chief executive Peter Lawwell and chairman Ian Bankier, hit out at the rogue element within its support and the club has already banned for life one fan whom they claim was involved with the banner and who was also arrested by Italian police for an alleged assault on a Celtic steward.

The club also vowed to sift through photographic evidence to find those fans responsible for the use of the flares, warning that they will take "appropriate action".

After the game Lawwell braced himself for "consequences" saying: "I believe the flares and banner are in the UEFA report and we will have to face the consequences sometime next week.

"It is very frustrating. Those people are not Celtic supporters.

"The vast majority of Celtic supporters are positively supporting Celtic, we have a magnificent reputation around Europe and this unfortunately is an embarrassment that we can't tolerate."