The Champions League will conclude at Wembley in June
The draw for the Champions League last-16 takes place this morning as the remaining teams find out who they’ll face in the first knockout round.
The reigning champions, Manchester City, eased through the group stages winning all six of their matches to finish top of Group G with only Real Madrid, in Group C, achieving the same feat this season. Arsenal are the other English team in the knockout round as Manchester United and Newcastle were both eliminated from Europe on the final matchday. United’s fate was sealed in a 1-0 loss to Bayern Munich whilst Eddie Howe’s men went down 2-1 to AC Milan.
English clubs cannot be drawn with each other at this stage but there will be some interesting ties taking place in the new year.
Follow along for the latest updates from the Champions League last-16 draw, and get all the latest football betting sites offers here.
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A surprise entry
FC Copenhagen have qualified from their Champions League group for the second time, having previously done so in 2010/11.
They are the only Danish club to have finished in the top two in a Champions League group having beaten out Manchester United and Galatasaray to finish behind Bayern Munich in Group A.
They are in the unseeded pot and could come up against Manchester City or Arsenal in the last-16.
How Manchester United’s worst-ever Champions League campaign unravelled — and who is to blame
As the final whistle blew on Manchester United’s European campaign, the cast list on the pitch included Jonny Evans, Kobbie Mainoo, Facundo Pellestri and Hannibal Mejbri. One represents the past, another may be the future, two are likely to be footnotes in any account of United. The understudies – in some cases, the unknowns – representing a club who have spent £400m in 18 months, some £1.5bn in 11 years since Sir Alex Ferguson retired were the unwitting indications of how plans went awry. They ended up beaten by Bayern Munich with the kind of line-up likelier to be found in a pre-season friendly.
In different ways, it had gone wrong for their supposed superiors. Marcus Rashford’s Champions League season was curtailed early: United were 2-0 up against FC Copenhagen, looking likely to qualify when his accidental stamp on Elias Jelert brought a sending off then a suspension, before illness ruled him out of the Bayern match. For Casemiro, too, his final contribution was a red card, sent off in the second game against Galatasaray, the victim of one of Andre Onana’s blunders, banned and then injured thereafter. So much for the idea a multiple Champions League winner could have the same effect at Old Trafford. His sidekick in success at Real Madrid, Raphael Varane was an unused substitute when United conceded three goals in Istanbul to take their destiny out of their own hands.
How Man Utd’s worst-ever Champions League campaign unravelled — and who is to blame
United finished bottom of a group that contained FC Copenhagen and Galatasaray after a series of shambolic defensive performances – but there is plenty of blame to go around
What are the rules of the draw?
The group winners are seeded and will be drawn against one of the eight runners-up.
Teams from the same countries cannot play each other in the last 16, and you cannot be drawn against a team you’ve already played in the group stages.
The group winners will be at home for the second leg.
What will the last-16 fixtures take place?
First legs: 13/14/20/21 February 2024
Second legs: 5/6/12/13 March 2024
Champions League last-16 draw
Manchester City and Arsenal are the only two Premier League representatives in the Champions League knockout rounds after both teams finished top of their groups.
Manchester United and Newcastle were both eliminated from Europe entirely due to fourth place finishes.
City and Arsenal’s positions are group winners mean they will be placed in the seeded pots and should, in theory, end up with a favourable draw for the last-16.
Who is through to the last-16?
Runners-up:
- RB Leipzig
- PSV Eindhoven
- FC Copenhagen
- Napoli
- Inter Milan
- Porto
- Paris Saint-Germain
- Lazio
Who is through to the last-16?
Group winners:
- Manchester City
- Bayern Munich
- Arsenal
- Real Sociedad
- Real Madrid
- Atletico Madrid
- Borussia Dortmund
- Barcelona
When is the Champions League last-16 draw?
The draw will take place on Monday 18 December. It will start from 11am GMT and will take place in Nyon, Switzerland.
Champions League last-16 draw
Follow all the latest updates from the Champions League round-of-16 draw right here ahead of the main event at 11am GMT.
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