Tuesday, December 12, 2017
Yesterday, the draw for the Last 16 for the 2017–18 UEFA Champions League took place in Nyon, Switzerland at about noon local time (1100 UTC). The draw took place in two pots, one consisting of the respective group winners, and the second of the runners-up. Winners of the Last 16 play in the quarter-finals.
UEFA Champions League is the competitive league of Europe in which football clubs topping their respective leagues play for the trophy. 32 clubs across the continent played in eight groups, and the winner and runner-up of each group qualified for the Last 16 knockout round.
| Group runners-up | Group winners |
|---|---|
| Juventus (ITA) | Tottenham Hotspur (ENG) |
| FC Basel (SUI) | Manchester City (ENG) |
| FC Porto (POR) | Liverpool FC (ENG) |
| Sevilla FC (ESP) | Manchester United (ENG) |
| Real Madrid (ESP) | Paris Saint-Germain (FRA) |
| Shakhtar Donetsk (UKR) | AS Roma (ITA) |
| Chelsea FC (ENG) | FC Barcelona (ESP) |
| Bayern Munich (GER) | Be?ikta? JK (TUR) |
Defending champions Real Madrid, who finished second in their group behind Tottenham Hotspur, are to face French capital club Paris Saint-Germain. English capital football club Tottenham are to play last season’s finalists and Italian giants Juventus. Juve has finished runners-up in two out of last three Champions League finals — against FC Barcelona in 2014–15 and against Madrid last season.
Spanish La Liga leaders Barcelona are to play English champions Chelsea FC. This week, Chelsea lost 1–0 to another Londonese club West Ham United, leaving The Blues fourteen points behind Premier League leaders Manchester City. Manchester City are to play Swiss club FC Basel. Manchester City defeated their city rivals Manchester United 2–1 in the league on Sunday, and they are eleven points clear of United.
Manchester United are to play Spanish side Sevilla FC. This is the first time Europa League winners United are to play a competitive match against Sevilla. Liverpool is to play Portuguese club FC Porto. German giants Bayern Munich, who finished second behind Paris in the group stage, are to play Turkish side Be?ikta? JK. And Italian capital club AS Roma is to play Ukriane’s Shakhtar Donetsk.
The first leg of Last 16 is scheduled to be played in mid-February. The return leg is to be held in March. The final is scheduled to be played at NSC Olympiyskiy Stadium in Kiev, Ukraine, on May 26.
Spanish clubs have won the last four editions of the UEFA Champions League, with defending champions Real Madrid winning thrice, and their arch rivals Barcelona winning in 2015.