THE new-look Champions League group stage has finally been completed, with 24 teams now preparing to learn their fate in the competition.
Arsenal, Liverpool, Aston Villa and Barcelona were among the clubs to earn automatic qualification to the last-16, while the likes of Manchester City, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain will have to progress through a play-off.
Liverpool finished top of the group stage table this week[/caption]
Arsenal earned automatic qualification to the round-of-16[/caption]
Aston Villa also qualified[/caption]
Man City will have to qualify for the last-16 via a play-off[/caption]
The Premier League champions face arguably the hardest pick of the bunch as they will be drawn against either Bayern Munich or Real Madrid for the grudge match.
Meanwhile, we could also see a huge all-Serie A clash as well as two Dutch giants going head-to-head.
With the play-off draw not scheduled until tomorrow, SunSport has completed a simulation to see which path each team could potentially face.
Each play-off club is in a position to face one of two possible opponents, giving them a 50/50 chance – for example, Man City have a 50 per cent chance of facing Bayern Munich and a 50 per cent chance of facing Real Madrid.
This week’s draw will only determine the play-off fixtures, not which side of the bracket each of the 16 teams – not including the eight automatic qualifiers – will be on.
We have selected each team one by one, placing them into brackets for the sake of the overall simulator.
The first of each pairing has been put in the first half of the bracket and the second in the other.
In the simulated play-off draw, Man City have been pitted against Bayern Munich in arguably the pick of the bunch.
CASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS
According to the simulated draw, City could face Arsenal in the quarter-finals[/caption]
The list of fixtures completing the first half of the draw are; Monaco vs Benfica, Brugge vs Borussia Dortmund and the all-Italian clash between Juventus and AC Milan.
In the second half of the simulated draw, Dutch sides Feyenoord and PSV Eindhoven have been put against each other.
That side is completed with Brest vs PSG, Sporting Lisbon vs Atalanta and Celtic vs Real Madrid.
The round-of-16, quarter-final and semi-final draws will take place on February 21, so we will not officially know which side of the bracket each of the play-off winners will be on until then.
However, SunSport’s simulated draw sees Monaco/Benfica facing Barcelona, Brugge/Dortmund against Aston Villa, Man City/Bayern vs Atletico and Juventus/AC Milan vs Arsenal on one side.
That means fixtures between Breast/PSG and Liverpool, Sporting/Atalanta and Lille, Celtic/Real Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen as well as Feyenoord/PSV vs Inter Milan will be on the other.
Who faces who in the Champions League?
Here’s a look at the ties across the competition…
Teams who finished from ninth to 24th in the Champions League league phase will play off to decide who reaches the last-16.
PLAYOFF ROUND
Atalanta vs Sporting Lisbon or Club Brugge
Borussia Dortmund vs Sporting Lisbon or Club Brugge
Real Madrid vs Celtic or Man City
Bayern Munich vs Celtic or Man City
AC Milan vs Feyenoord or Juventus
PSV vs Feyenoord or Juventus
PSG vs AS Monaco or Brest
Benfica vs AS Monaco or Brest
Winners of playoff ties will then face the teams who finished in the top eight of the league phase in the last-16…
LAST 16
Liverpool vs PSG/Benfica/AS Monaco/Brest
Barcelona vs PSG/Benfica/AS Monaco/Brest
Arsenal vs AC Milan/PSV Eindhoven/Feyenoord/Juventus
Inter Milan vs AC Milan/PSV Eindhoven/Feyenoord/Juventus
Atletico Madrid vs Real Madrid/Bayern Munich/Celtic/Man City
Bayer Leverkusen vs Real Madrid/Bayern Munich/Celtic/Man City
Lille vs Atalanta/Borussia Dortmund/Sporting Lisbon/Club Brugge
Aston Villa vs Atalanta/Borussia Dortmund/Sporting Lisbon/Club Brugge
Should this be the case, fans could look forward to some huge potential quarter-final games including Barcelona vs Aston Villa, Real Madrid vs Inter and Man City vs Arsenal.
We could even see an all-Premier League final if Arsenal or Man City and Liverpool go the distance.
The Gunners are seeking their first-ever Champions League title, with City and Liverpool both looking to take it back after winning it in recent years.
