Europa League 2020/21 round of 16 draw: as it happened
UEFA Europa League round of 16 draw
Many thanks for your company this afternoon for the draw and stay with AS English for subsequent reaction to the Europa League round of 16 draw.
The definitive kick-off times will be confirmed in apprixametly 90 minutes by UEFA
The first-leg matches of the round of 16 are scheduled to be played on 11 March with the return fixtures taking place a week later in 18 March.
Kick-off times are split between 18:55 CET and 21:00 CET (as per the group stage and round of 32).
The quarter-final and semi-final draws will take place on Friday 19 March.
A decent draw for the Spanish sides with Granada facing outsiders Molde and Villarreal facing a trickier test as they face Dynamo Kiev.
The big, big fixture is no doubt the return of Zlatan to Old Trafford.... as United take on Milan
that leaves Molde and Granada with the Spanish side at home first
Penultimate pairing sees..... Slavia Prague will play Rangers
Next game pairs..... Man United and the 2017 UEL winners will take on AC Milan.... wow !
Match #5 will be: Dinamo Zagreb will play Spurs
Game four: Olympiacos and the Greek side take on Arsenal
Next fixture will see.....AS Roma with the Serie A outfit set to face Shakhtar Donetsk
Match 2: Dynamo Kiev who will play Villarreal
First side out is ...... Ajax and they will face Young Boys
Kick off times will be made official via UEFA later this afternoon
All set for the draw.... no Giorgio today : /
Today's draw is open, no seeding and no country restrictions in place... a North London derby is a possibility !
All set.....
A reminder of the 16 sides still left in the competition.
AC Milan (ITA)
Ajax (NED)
Arsenal (ENG)
Dinamo Zagreb (CRO)
Dynamo Kyiv (UKR)
Granada (ESP)
Manchester United (ENG)
Molde (NOR)
Olympiacos (GRE)
Rangers (SCO)
Roma (ITA)
Shakhtar Donetsk (UKR)
Slavia Praha (CZE)
Tottenham (ENG)
Villarreal (ESP)
Young Boys (SUI)
Hakan Yakin on hand to assist with the draw this morning, a former Young Boys player.
Michael Heselschwerd, Head of Club Competitions, now talks us through the draw procedure and starts by thanking the clubs for their cooperation during the pandemic.
Could the Europa League offer 39-year-old Zlatan the chance of winning silverware with Milan's title tilt very much under threat by city rivals Inter.
Now a time to review some of the better goals from the round with a pulsating (but every so slightly uplifting) Euro-dance soundbed.
Pedro Pinto our mc for the draw talks us through the round of 32 matches
Just minutes away from heading to Nyon for the draw..... Major excitement for Molde and Granada fans as they take a place alongside iconic European sides such as Ajax, Roma, Man United, Spurs and Arsenal...
Reminder: The first-leg matches are scheduled to be played on 11 March with the return fixtures taking place a week later in 18 March.
Kick-off times are split between 18:55 CET and 21:00 CET (as per the group stage and round of 32).
The quarter-final and semi-final draws will take place on 19 March.
Current Europa League champions Sevilla FC won't be defending their title this season with the LaLiga outfit involved in the Champions League where Julen Lopetegui's men face a stern task over overturning a first leg 2-3 defeat to Borussia Dortmund around.
I anticipate today's draw taking about 30 minutes. There will be no club officials present in Nyon due to covid restrictions and the draw will be overseen by UEFA evergreens Pedro Pinto and walking encyclopedia Giorgio Marchetti, whose knowledge of everything UEFA related on the spot is hugely impressive.
Apart from England with three teams (United, Spurs & Arsenal), three nations feature two sides: Italy (Roma and AC Milan), Spain (Villarreal and Granada) and Ukraine (Shakhtar and Dinamo Kiev). No German sides progressed to the round of 16 stage with Leverkusen and Hoffenheim being eliminated.
The biggest shock of the round of 32 was undoubtedly the home defeat of high flying Premier League side Leicester City who were stunned at home 0-2 by Slavia Prague after a 0-0 first leg scoreline in the Czech capital a week ago.
Of the remaining 16 teams, only Spurs (UEFA Cup x 2) Ajax (UEFA Cup) Man United (2017) and Shakhtar Donetsk (UEL 2009) are the previous winners of the competition.
The first-leg matches of the round of 16 are scheduled to be played on 11 March with the return fixtures taking place a week later in 18 March.
Kick-off times are split between 18:55 CET and 21:00 CET (as per the group stage and round of 32).
The quarter-final and semi-final draws will take place on Friday 19 March.
The Norwegian outfit are the rank outsiders to claim the trophy at 300-1 with the podium of favourites currently being English Premier League trio: Manchester United, Arsenal and Tottenham.
Molde are flying the flag for the Norwegian Eliteserien as they secured an impressive 0-2 win at Hoffenheim to advance (3-3) on the away goal rule.
There were scenes of jubilation in Naples as Granada CF, playing for the first time ever in European competition, despatched Serie A giants Napoli to advance to the round of 16. A defeat on the night 2-1 saw the LaLiga side progress 2-3 on aggregate.
This years Europa League final is scheduled to be played at the Stadion Miejski in Gdansk on 26 May.
Today's draw is open, no seeding and no country restrictions in place... a North London derby is a possibility !
The full listing of the 16 remaining teams:
AC Milan (ITA)
Ajax (NED)
Arsenal (ENG)
Dinamo Zagreb (CRO)
Dynamo Kyiv (UKR)
Granada (ESP)
Manchester United (ENG)
Molde (NOR)
Olympiacos (GRE)
Rangers (SCO)
Roma (ITA)
Shakhtar Donetsk (UKR)
Slavia Praha (CZE)
Tottenham (ENG)
Villarreal (ESP)
Young Boys (SUI)
England is the nation with the most remaining sides with three sides involved: Manchester United, Spurs and Arsenal
Hello and a very warm welcome to our coverage of the UEFA Europa League last 16 draw which will commence at 13:00 CET in Nyon (Switzerland)