Italy and France lead cup charge
Thursday, February 23, 2006
Article summary
Although Italy and France each have three representatives left in the last 16 of the UEFA Cup the only former winners hail from Germany - FC Schalke 04.
Article body
Former winners
AS Roma, Udinese Calcio and US Città di Palermo all progressed tonight to set up respective ties against Middlesbrough FC of England, Bulgaria's PFC Levski Sofia, and the only former winners left in the competition, FC Schalke 04. Heading the French contingent are one-time European champions Olympique de Marseille, whose reward for beating Bolton Wanderers FC is a tie with FC Zenit St. Petersburg.
Romanian duo
RC Strasbourg would have been set for an all-Ligue 1 affair had FC Basel 1893 not eliminated AS Monaco FC, while LOSC Lille Métropole face Sevilla FC. The Spanish club's city rivals Real Betis Balompié will meet an FC Steaua Bucuresti side whose cross-town foes AFC Rapid Bucuresti tackle Hamburger SV.
Fixture dates
The Round of 16 will get under way on Thursday 9 March, with the return matches taking place the following Wednesday and Thursday. Venues and kick-off times will be confirmed on 27 February.
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