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Europa League round of 16: what to get excited about!

There is no shortage of former winners in the hunt for the UEFA Europa League trophy; will they make it to the last eight?

Arsenal limber up to face Rennes
Arsenal limber up to face Rennes ©Getty Images

The UEFA Europa League round of 16 line-up is packed with pedigree talent; who will stay in the hunt to lift the heaviest of the UEFA club competition trophies?

Highlights from 24:00CET wherever you are after every matchnight

Round of 16, first legs

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  • Chelsea's Olivier Giroud may be one to watch; the Frenchman has scored in his last five UEFA Europa League games, and will be looking to maintain that flow against Dynamo Kyiv – who lost 2-1 on their last trip to Stamford Bridge in the 2015/16 UEFA Champions League.

  • Four sides who featured at this stage last season are in contention: Arsenal, Dynamo Kyiv, Salzburg and Zenit. The Gunners and Salzburg both bowed out in the semi-finals last time around. The Austrian side's Munas Dabbur is the top scorer in this season's UEFA Europa League with seven goals.

  • Arsenal custodian Petr Čech is up against Rennes, the side he represented from 2002–04, before moving to England. Set to retire at the end of the season, the Czech watched former Sevilla No1 Andrés Palop make the draw, and tweeted: "When a goalkeeper makes the draw good things happen!"

Thursday

18:55CET
Dinamo Zagreb v Benfica
Frankfurt v Internazionale Milano

Rennes v Arsenal
Sevilla v Slavia Praha

Zenit v Villarreal

21:00CET

Chelsea v Dynamo Kyiv
Napoli v Salzburg

Valencia v Krasnodar

Quarter-final and semi-final draws, 15 March