Sports

Five English teams in Europe’s last 16 – here’s what could happen next

For the first time in history, there will be five teams from a single country in the last 16 of the Champions League after Premier League sides reversed years of underwhelming results by collectively booking their place in the knock-out rounds.

Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City and Tottenham all progressed as winners of their group, while Chelsea finished second behind Roma in Group C.

That means the Blues can only face Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona or Besiktas in the next round. The four other English sides are not possible opponents as teams can only face a domestic rival in the quarter-finals and beyond.

Likewise, Roma are out of the question as teams cannot meet group stage opposition again until the last eight.

Read more:Why Liverpool's Champions League qualification cost Chelsea and Manchester United over €10m in revenue

Although Chelsea face a daunting task – and Turkish champions Besiktas' record at home and in Europe suggests they will be no soft touch either – even the four group winners could still find themselves facing off against a European heavyweight in the next round.

Reigning champions Real Madrid, 2013 champions Bayern Munich, 2015 and 2017 runners-up Juventus are all in Pot 2 having failed to win their groups.

When is the draw?

The draw takes place on Monday 11 December at 11am UK time at Uefa's headquarters in Switzerland.

Liverpool

Liverpool finished as England's top scorers in the group stage, with 23 goals (Source: Getty)

Potential opponents:

  • Real Madrid
  • Bayern Munich
  • Juventus
  • Porto
  • Shakhtar Donetsk
  • Basel

Manchester City

SSC Napoli v Manchester City - UEFA Champions League
City are the most in-form side in Europe's top leagues (Source: Getty)

Potential opponents:

  • Real Madrid
  • Bayern Munich
  • Juventus
  • Sevilla
  • Porto
  • Basel

Manchester United

FBL-EUR-C1-MAN UTD-BASEL
Can De Gea keep out Europe's elite in the knock-out stages? (Source: Getty)

Potential opponents:

  • Real Madrid
  • Bayern Munich
  • Juventus
  • Sevilla
  • Porto
  • Shakhtar Donetsk

​Tottenham Hotspur

FBL-EUR-C1-TOTTENHAM-APOEL
Tottenham topped a group that included reigning champions Real Madrid and recent finalists Dortmund (Source: Getty)

Potential opponents:

  • Bayern Munich
  • Juventus
  • Sevilla
  • Porto
  • Shakhtar Donetsk
  • Basel

Chelsea

FBL-EUR-C1-CHELSEA-ROMA
Chelsea were knocked out by PSG in 2015 and 2016 (Source: Getty)

Potential opponents:

  • Barcelona
  • Paris Saint-Germain
  • Besiktas

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