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Manchester United joined Arsenal in the Europa League round of 16 draw after beating Barcelona… the Red Devils are unseeded, although that could be an advantage! But when is the draw? And who can both sides play against?
The Europa League play-off round came to a close on Thursday night, with the draw for the round of 16 scheduled for Friday afternoon.
Arsenal have been patiently waiting for the conclusion of the play-off round to meet their round of 16 opponents, having automatically qualified for the next round after topping their group.
Manchester United, who finished second in their group before facing a tough play-off encounter against Barcelona, finished the job at Old Trafford with a 2-1 win to go through, after drawing 2-2 with the European giants in Spain.
The Red Devils will not be seeded in Friday’s draw and will therefore face a group winner in the next round. However, as we’ll see shortly, this could benefit Erik ten Hag’s side.
Sportsmail takes you through all the details of the last 16 below, including how it will work, when it will take place and who the English teams could face.
Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal secured a place in the Europa League round of 16 after winning their group
Erik ten Hag (left) and Xavi (right) clashed as Man United beat Barcelona 2-1 to advance
When is the draw and how to watch it?
The draw for the round of 16 of the Europa League will take place on Friday, February 24.
As usual, the draw will take place at the House of European Football in Nyon, Switzerland.
The Europa League draw is scheduled to start at 12pm UK time.
It will be available to stream on the official UEFA website, while sports mail will also cover it live, so you can stay up to date with us.
How will the raffle work?
The round of 16 draw will consist of eight seeds, being the ones that finished first in their group.
The seeded teams will be drawn against one of the eight winners of the play-off round.
Manchester United cannot be drawn against Arsenal in the round of 16 due to draw rules
Ironically, teams that were relegated from the Champions League were later placed in the play-off round, meaning that initially advancing to the round of 16 as group winners may actually end up being a disadvantage.
However, the seeded team will have the advantage of playing their first leg first and the second leg at home.
Teams from the same country will not be able to play each other at this stage of the tournament.
Who is involved?
seeded sides
- Union Saint-Gilloise
- Arsenal
- SC Freiburg
- Ferencváros
- feyenoord
- Real Betis
- real society
- Fenerbahce
Unqualified teams (Europa League play-off winners)
- manchester united
- juventus
- sporting lisbon
- Shakhtar Donetsk
- union berlin
- bayer leverkusen
- Seville
- Rome
Who could Arsenal and Manchester United play with?
As stated, the top seeds will meet the unseeded in the round of 16, meaning Manchester United will avoid Juventus, Roma and Sevilla in the next round.
Meanwhile, the Red Devils cannot face Arsenal as no team from the same country can play each other at this stage.
United avoid any of the Champions League teams when the draw for the round of 16 takes place
It means that Ten Hag’s team could face: Union Saint-Gilloise, SC Freiburg, Ferencvaros, Feyenoord, Real Betis, Real Sociedad or Fenerbahce.
Arsenal, meanwhile, can take on any of the unseeded teams mentioned above, apart from United of course.
Key dates of the Europa League
- Round of 16: March 9 and 16
- Draw for quarters and semifinals: March 17
- Quarterfinals: April 13 and 20
- Semifinals: May 11 and 18
- End: May 31