Following the conclusion of the round of 16 draw, the most likely route for Liverpool, Arsenal, and Aston Villa to reach the final of the Champions League has been revealed.
With a total of 21 points earned from their eight matches, Liverpool emerged victorious in the newly implemented group stage format, which includes a total of 32 companies.
Following their victory over Celtic at Villa Park on the final day of the season, Aston Villa finished in eighth place, while Arsenal finished in third place.
The result of this was that all three teams were automatically qualified for the round of sixteen as seeds, which means that they will play the second leg of their ties at their respective locations.
Furthermore, this meant that none of them were required to compete in a two-leg play-off, which was a competition that teams that finished in ninth to 24th place in the group stage were required to participate in.
These matches came to a close on Wednesday, and the draw for the round of sixteen will take place on Friday at the headquarters of UEFA, which is located in Nyon, Switzerland.
Because they will be playing the French powerhouse Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool has been given one of the most difficult draws out of all of the teams that were seeded by the tournament.
Aston Villa, on the other hand, will face off against Club Brugge of Belgium, and Arsenal will face off against PSV, the team that currently holds the title of Dutch champion.
The routes that each club will take to reach the championship game have also been made more transparent.
If Liverpool is successful in defeating Paris Saint-Germain, they will be able to face the winner of the second group stage match between Club Brugge and Villa.
There is a possibility that this will bring up the possibility of the Reds playing at Villa Park just a few weeks after they played a 2-2 draw in the Midlands on Wednesday evening.
It is possible that Arsenal, another English team, will be the opponent for Arne Slot’s team in the semi-final. However, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, and PSV are also potential opponents for Arsenal.
On the opposite side of the bracket, there are teams like Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Bayer Leverkusen, and Inter Milan that have a chance to compete in the championship game.
A route that led Arsenal to the final of the Champions League
Arsenal, coached by Mikel Arteta, will be faced with the daunting prospect of facing either Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid in the quarterfinals of the Champions League if they are able to defeat PSV over the course of two legs.
They could then face any of PSG, Club Brugge or fellow English clubs Liverpool or Aston Villa in the semi-final of the competition.
Arsenal are on the same side of the bracket as Liverpool so have the same list of potential Champions League final opponents, including Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Bayer Leverkusen and Inter Milan.
Aston Villa’s path to the Champions League final
Unai Emery’s Aston Villa side will take on either PSG or Liverpool in a daunting Champions League quarter-final if they can defeat Club Brugge in the last 16.
Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, PSV or Arsenal are then their potential opponents in the semi-final if they can make it that far, with the same list of possible final opponents as Liverpool and Arsenal above.
Champions League round of 16 draw in full
Liverpool will take on Paris Saint-Germain.
Club Brugge vs Aston Villa
Taking on Atletico Madrid is Real Madrid.
Arsenal take on PSV
The match between Benfica and Barcelona
Marseille versus Borussia Dortmund
The match between Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen
Between Feyenoord and Inter Milan
