UEFA to make announcement that could affect Arsenal in Europa League round of 16 draw
The potential path to this season’s Europa League final for Arsenal appears to be one of the toughest since the competition was rebranded.
Despite finishing at the top of their group and benefiting from a UEFA rule change that allows group winners to progress automatically to the round of 16, the caliber of teams that have transferred over from the Champions League suggests that things will be significantly more challenging.
Before the Champions League went on a break in November, it was confirmed that Barcelona, Ajax, Juventus, Bayer Leverkusen, Red Bull Salzburg, Shakhtar Donetsk, Sporting CP, and the record six-time Europa League champions, Sevilla, had all qualified for the knockout play-off round after finishing third in their respective groups.
As the second leg of the knockout play-off round takes place on Thursday, the teams that Arsenal will have to overcome to win their first European trophy since 1994 will soon become clearer.
Manchester United, AS Roma, Juventus, and Monaco all have a chance of joining the round of 16.
Currently, it seems that Sevilla is in a good position to progress after their 3-0 victory over PSV Eindhoven, who were runners-up to Arsenal in the group phase. The tie between Manchester United and Barcelona is set up for a thrilling encounter after their 2-2 draw at the Camp Nou in the first leg.
Juventus will need to work hard to progress to the round of 16 after being held at home by Nantes. Jose Mourinho’s Roma will have to overturn a 1-0 deficit against Salzburg, and there could be a surprise on the cards as Union Berlin managed to hold Dutch giants Ajax to a goalless draw in the away leg.
As for Arsenal, they have a range of potential opponents and restrictions for the Europa League round of 16 draw. SportsDias has analyzed the situation, and they can offer more information on who the Gunners can and cannot be paired with.
As per UEFA.com, the draw works as such:
- The eight UEFA Europa League group stage winners will be seeded; the eight knockout round play-off winners will be unseeded.
- The UEFA Europa League group winners play the second leg at home.
- Clubs from the same association cannot be drawn against each other. Further restrictions will be announced before the draw.
As one of the UEFA Europa League group stage winners, Arsenal is restricted from facing Real Betis, Fenerbahce, Ferencvaros, Feyenoord, Freiburg, Real Sociedad, or Union Saint-Gilliose. Additionally, if Manchester United eliminates Barcelona, they cannot be paired with Arsenal since they are from the same association.
However, if Arsenal emerges victorious at Old Trafford and other matches go their way, they could potentially be paired with current La Liga leaders Barcelona, as well as Ajax/Union Berlin, Juventus/Nantes, Bayer Leverkusen/Monaco, Salzburg/Roma, Sevilla/PSV Eindhoven, Shakhtar/Rennes, and Sporting CP/Midtjylland.
The website of UEFA has mentioned that they will reveal more limitations before the draw, so it is not yet clear whether Arsenal and PSV Eindhoven will be matched up in case PSV manages to make an impressive comeback, given that the two teams have already played against each other in the group stage.
On Friday, February 24 2023 at 12pm CET, the round of 16 draw for the 2022/23 UEFA Europa League will be conducted at the House of European Football located in Nyon, Switzerland.
UEFA to make announcement that could affect Arsenal in Europa League round of 16 draw
