UEFA Europa League round of 16 draw
Friday, February 24, 2017
Article summary
The last 16 features an all-German tie, a Belgian head-to-head, free-scoring Lyon taking on free-scoring Roma and Manchester United versus the lowest-ranked side left in contention.
Article top media content
Article body
- Ties: 9 and 16 March
Celta Vigo (ESP) v Krasnodar (RUS)
- Celta Vigo needed a 91st-minute penalty and extra time on Thursday to see off a Shakhtar side that started the night with a 100% record this campaign.
- Krasnodar reached the last 32 despite losing half of their group games. The club were only founded nine years ago!
APOEL (CYP) v Anderlecht (BEL)
- Cypriot champions APOEL, UEFA Champions League quarter-finalists in 2011/12, are into the last 16 of this competition for the first time.
- Anderlecht, UEFA Cup winners in 1983, were heading out on Thursday until a 90th-minute winner took them through at the expense of Zenit.
Schalke (GER) v Mönchengladbach (GER)
- Schalke and Mönchengladbach will face off three times in 13 days next month, as they also meet in the Bundesliga on 4 March. Schalke won 4-0 at home to Gladbach in October.
- Schalke are the top-ranked team left in the competition according to the UEFA coefficients. They lifted the UEFA Cup in 1996/97.
- Gladbach are one of four former winners still in contention, and the only one to do it twice: in 1975 and 1979.
Lyon (FRA) v Roma (ITA)
- Lyon and Roma met in the 2006/07 UEFA Champions League round of 16. A 0-0 draw in the Italian capital was followed by a 2-0 win for the Giallorossi in France.
- Lyon became the first side to score seven in one UEFA Europa League game when they beat AZ 7-1 on Thursday.
- With nearest rivals Giuliano and Aritz Aduriz now out, eight-goal Roma striker Edin Džeko is favourite to claim this season's top scorer prize.
Rostov (RUS) v Manchester United (ENG)
- Rostov were the lowest-ranked club in the draw according to the UEFA coefficients. This is their second season in Europe.
- Manchester United are bidding to become one of just five clubs who have won the European Cup, European Cup Winners' Cup and UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League.
Olympiacos (GRE) v Beşiktaş (TUR)
- Olympiacos eliminated another Turkish team, Osmanlıspor, in the round of 16.
- Turkish title holders Beşiktaş are seven matches unbeaten at home in European competition, drawing five of them.
Gent (BEL) v Genk (BEL)
- Gent and Genk have already met twice in the league this term, with the home side winning on each occasion (1-0 for Gent in August, 2-0 for Genk in December).
- Gent conceded ten goals in two encounters with Shakhtar in the group stage but saw off Tottenham in front of an 80,000 Wembley crowd in the last 32.
- Genk are the longest surviving team in this tournament, having entered in the second qualifying round in July.
København (DEN) v Ajax (NED)
- København are the only reigning domestic double winners in the competition and, 11 points clear in Denmark, are on course to repeat that feat.
- Excluding the five clubs that entered in the round of 32, Ajax are the last unbeaten side in the UEFA Europa League.
Where is the final?
The Friends Arena in Solna, near the Swedish capital Stockholm and named after an anti-bullying campaign. Final tickets will go on sale soon, with a proportion set aside for fans of the two finalist sides. Corporate hospitality packages are on sale now.