Europa League and Conference League: Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace to learn last-16 opponents in Friday's draw
The Europa League and conference league last-16 draws take place on Friday, with 16 teams left in each competition and three Premier League clubs involved: Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace. The Europa League draw is at 12pm and the Conference League draw at 1pm, and every team's potential opponents for the next round has already been narrowed down to two possibilities.
Which English teams remain
The three English sides in the knockout stages are Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace. With the midweek play-offs concluding, English teams know they will face one of two opponents but do not know their individual pathways until the draw is made. The earliest two English teams could face each other is the quarter-finals of the Europa League between Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest. Crystal Palace do not have any potential English opponents in the Conference League.
Conference League last-16 possibilities
Every team's potential opponents for the next round has already been narrowed down to two possibilities. In the Conference League, Crystal Palace could face Mainz or AEK Larnaca. The structure allows teams to play opponents from their own country and opponents they have already faced in the competition.
Seeded sides and rules
Seeded (finished top eight in the league phase) status applies to the sides that did not require a play-off. The sides that did not require a play-off will be seeded, meaning they get to play the second leg of their last-16 ties at home. Seeded (finished top eight in the league phase) is the designation used to determine which clubs receive that advantage.
Last-16 matchups narrowed down
For the Europa League, the three English clubs have two possible opponents each: Aston Villa will face Celta Vigo or PAOK; Nottingham Forest will be drawn against Real Betis or Midtjylland; Crystal Palace will get Mainz or AEK Larnaca. Every team’s opponent list has been reduced to two options ahead of Friday’s draws.
Play-off results and highlights
Recent play-off outcomes settled several of those possibilities. Celta Vigo beat PAOK 3-1 on aggregate, winning 1-0 in their Europa League play-off second leg. Lille bounced back from losing the first leg to win 2-0 at Red Star Belgrade. Robbie Keane's Ferencvaros overturned a one-goal first-leg deficit to win 2-0 at home and knock out Ludogorets Razgrad. Despite losing 1-0 at home to Celtic, Stuttgart also went through 4-2 on aggregate.
Highlights from recent rounds include: Forest survive Fenerbahce scare to continue European run, and Bodo/Glimt make history with a stunning victory over Inter.
Schedule and next dates
Both draws will take place on Friday, with the Europa League from 12pm and the Conference League from 1pm. The round-of-16 match schedule will be available on Friday evening. The quarter-final match schedule will be confirmed on March 19, while the semi-final schedule will be communicated on April 16.
Aston Villa has also invited fans to join now to receive the latest news, purchase tickets and get exclusive access to Aston Villa content as well as a host of other benefits. With the draws set for Friday, clubs and supporters will learn exact paths through the last 16 later in the day.
