The draw for the Champions League knockout stages is almost upon us, and we’ll soon find out who we’ll be facing in the round of 16.
After topping the league phase with eight wins from eight, we skipped the knockout play-off round and ensured we would have second-leg home advantage right the way through the knockout stages.
Following a dramatic set of knockout play-off ties, the round of 16 teams are now set for Friday’s draw at 11am (UK time). So who could we face, and when will we know? We’ve analysed everything for you here:
Who qualified for the last 16 automatically?
As well as ourselves, seven other teams enjoyed skipping the extra knockout stage in February.
Bayern Munich finished second, with the only points they dropped courtesy of our 3-1 success back in November. Liverpool and Tottenham finished third and fourth, while two other fellow Premier League teams have also advanced – Chelsea and Manchester City.
The final spot was secured by Sporting Lisbon, who scored a 94th-minute winner against Athletic Club to advance.
Who qualified from the knockout play-offs?
There was drama aplenty in the knockout play-off round as last season’s beaten finalists, Inter Milan, were knocked out by Norwegian side Bodo/Glimt.
The side, based in the Arctic Circle, defeated Manchester City and Atletico Madrid in the last two league phase matches to sneak into the knockouts, then won home and away against the Italian giants to reach the round of 16 for the first time in their history.
Elsewhere, 1996-winners Juventus were knocked out by Turkish side Galatasaray 7-5 on aggregate. Having lost 5-2 in the first leg, Juve went 3-0 up to send the game to extra time in the second leg, despite being down to 10 men. However, the Turkish side rallied thanks to goals from Victor Osimhen and Barıs Yilmaz to advance to the round of 16 for the first time since 2014.
Real Madrid, Newcastle United, Atletico Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen, Atalanta and defending champions Paris Saint-Germain also qualified for the next round.
Who could we face?
Each team’s position in the league determined which teams they would face in the next round by being placed into a bracket.
The top eight qualifiers are included at the last 16 stage and, as the team that finished first in the table, we knew we would face one of the sides that finished between 15th and 18th spot: Atalanta, Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund and Olympiacos.
Bayer Leverkusen defeated Olympiacos 2-0 on aggregate, before Atalanta sparked a dramatic comeback to knockout Borussia Dortmund 4-3 on aggregate, having lost the first leg 2-0.
It means that we will face either Bayer Leverkusen or Atalanta in the round of 16.
When will we know our opponents?
The draw to determine our next opponent will take place on Friday, February 27, with proceedings kicking off at 11am (UK time).
This draw will also plot the fixtures for the remainder of the knockout stages, showing which side of the bracket we will be on and allowing us to map out a route to the final by looking at potential future opponents should we progress.
The last-16 gets underway in March, with the first leg away from home on 10-11th, before we host our opponents at Emirates Stadium on 17-18 March.
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