DISCOVER THE UCL KNOCKOUT BRACKET: WHO ARSENAL AND LIVERPOOL ARE LIKELY TO FACE
Chaos looms as 18 matches decide the UCL Round of 16. Projections for Newcastle, Chelsea, and Tottenham’s big night.
The Champions League table is hanging by a thread, and Wednesday night promises chaos. Every team—36 in total—has just one game left to play before the knockout rounds come into focus.
All 18 matches start at 8pm sharp on Wednesday. Six Premier League clubs are still in the mix, and five of them are sitting pretty in the top eight.
If you finish in the top eight, you get seeded and go straight to the round of 16. Land anywhere from ninth to 24th, though, and you have to slog through a two-legged play-off. Arsenal are basically locked in at the top thanks to their insane goal difference. Liverpool and Tottenham just need to handle their business—beat Qarabag and Eintracht Frankfurt—and they’re through.
Newcastle, Chelsea, and Manchester City still have work to do. And because of the new Champions League draw, we already have a decent idea who each team might face—even though everything could change on the night.
Right now, Man City are 11th, making them the only English side not automatically through. Our projections have them facing either Monaco or PSV in the play-off.
If City win that, their reward is a tie with either Spurs or PSG in the last 16. Not exactly a walk in the park.
Spurs, if they avoid City, look set to play Monaco, PSV, or Atletico Madrid in their opener.
Arsenal’s reward for topping the group? A last-16 showdown with one of Galatasaray, Qarabag, Juventus, or Borussia Dortmund.
Liverpool, sitting fourth, is on track to meet Atalanta, Inter Milan, Marseille, or Bayer Leverkusen.
Newcastle, currently seventh, could run into Barcelona if they keep their spot. Other possible opponents: Sporting CP, Athletic Club, or Olympiacos.
Chelsea are eighth, so they’re pulling from the same pool as Newcastle.
The way the draw pans out, Arsenal could meet Newcastle or Chelsea in the quarters. You might even get an all-English quarter-final. Or Barcelona could be waiting.
Liverpool—six-time champs—could end up facing Man City or Spurs in the quarter-finals, or maybe PSG or Atletico. Nothing’s set in stone, but with just one game left for everyone, the table could flip fast.
Arsenal looks locked into second overall. Liverpool probably can’t get higher than third, thanks to goal difference.
Tottenham’s best hope is third. Newcastle and Chelsea have to avoid losing—Newcastle at PSG, Chelsea at Napoli—to stay in the top eight. City needs to beat Galatasaray at home and hope a few results go their way.
One last twist: topping the league phase didn’t help Liverpool last season—they got PSG in the last 16 and bowed out early. But this time, if Arsenal finish top, they’ll get home advantage in the second leg of every knockout tie. That could make all the difference.
UCL DRAW 2026 LAST 16: PREMIER LEAGUE GIANTS FACE BRUTAL DRAW IN QUEST FOR EUROPEAN GLORY 2026
The Champions League draw is out! Read the full list of fixtures, including Man City vs Real Madrid and Newcastle’s trip to Barcelona.
Manchester City will go head-to-head with Real Madrid in what’s easily the standout fixture of this season’s Champions League round of 16.
UEFA stuck to the same process as last year’s new format, running the draws for the last 16, quarter-finals, and semi-finals all on the same day in Nyon, Switzerland.
There’s still plenty of English interest left in the competition. Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, Newcastle, Tottenham, and Man City all made it through, which pretty much guarantees the Premier League an extra Champions League spot next season thanks to the UEFA coefficient.
With the seeding and pairing rules, each of the 16 teams already knew they’d be facing one of just two possible opponents in the next round.
Liverpool and Tottenham ended up in the same section of the bracket. No surprise, since they finished third and fourth in their groups.
Arsenal, who topped their group, drew Bayern Munich. Manchester City got Sporting Lisbon, and Chelsea lined up against Barcelona.
After Newcastle’s play-off win over Qarabag, they were slotted into their section of the bracket.
Now that the draw’s done, here’s what’s coming up: Chelsea will take on defending champions PSG, and Newcastle will get Barcelona.
Real Madrid against Manchester City is the pick of the bunch, two giants going toe-to-toe.
Liverpool will face Galatasaray, while Tottenham will meet Atletico Madrid.
Arsenal, meanwhile, are set to play either Bayer Leverkusen or Atalanta – a tricky tie either way.
Here’s the full Champions League last 16 draw for 2025/26:
Manchester City vs Real Madrid
Bodø/Glimt vs Sporting
Paris Saint-Germain vs Chelsea
Newcastle vs Barcelona
Galatasaray vs Liverpool
Atletico Madrid vs Tottenham
Atalanta vs Bayern Munich
Bayer Leverkusen vs Arsenal
And for the Europa League quarter-finals:
Paris Saint-Germain/Chelsea vs Galatasaray/Liverpool
Real Madrid/Manchester City vs Atalanta/Bayern Munich
Newcastle/Barcelona vs Tottenham/Atletico Madrid
Bodø/Glimt/Sporting vs Bayer Leverkusen/Arsenal
The Europa League semi-finals shape up like this:
Paris Saint-Germain/Chelsea/Galatasaray/Liverpool vs Real Madrid/Manchester City/Atalanta/Bayern Munich
Newcastle/Barcelona/Tottenham/Atletico Madrid vs Bodo/Glimt/Sporting/Bayer Leverkusen/Arsenal
As for the dates, here’s what you need to know:
Round of 16: March 10/11 & 17/18, 2026
Quarter-finals: April 7/8 & 14/15, 2026
Semi-finals: April 28/29 & May 5/6, 2026
Final: May 30, 2026, in Budapest
PSG THROUGH: PARIS SURVIVE 2-2 MONACO THRILLER TO REACH CHAMPIONS LEAGUE LAST 16
Discover how PSG survived a 2-2 draw with Monaco to clinch a 5-4 aggregate Champions League victory.
PSG had to fight for it, but they’re through. On Wednesday night in Paris, they drew 2–2 with Monaco and squeezed into the Champions League last 16, winning 5–4 on aggregate. The match was anything but straightforward.
Last week’s first leg was wild; PSG came from two goals down to win 3–2 after Monaco lost a player to a red card early in the second half. This time, Monaco, determined and dangerous, went ahead again. Maghnes Akliouche finished off a sharp move just before halftime, levelling the overall score and raising the tension another notch.
Then, just when Monaco seemed to be in control, disaster struck. Mamadou Coulibaly picked up a second yellow card in the 58th minute, and suddenly, Monaco were down to ten men again, just like last week. PSG wasted no time. From the free kick that followed, Marquinhos bundled in the equaliser, and the mood inside the Parc des Princes changed immediately.
The pressure didn’t let up. A few minutes later, Hakimi smashed a shot at Monaco’s keeper, Philipp Köhn, who could only parry it away. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia pounced and put PSG ahead, and it looked like they’d finally broken Monaco’s resistance.
But Monaco weren’t done. Deep into stoppage time, substitute Jordan Teze poked home a deflected cross to make it 2–2 on the night and push PSG right to the edge. Wout Faes even came close to grabbing a late winner, but PSG held firm. The home crowd could finally breathe.
Now, PSG waits to find out who they’ll face next. Barcelona or Chelsea could be waiting in the draw on Friday, with the final in Budapest looming in the distance. There’s history with both clubs. PSG beat Barcelona away back in October, and they’ve met five times in knockout rounds since 2013. Chelsea? That still stings. PSG lost 3–0 to them in last year’s Club World Cup final, the only real blemish in a phenomenal season.
Most people expected PSG to handle Monaco easily. Monaco is way behind them in Ligue 1 and hasn’t made a deep Champions League run since 2017, when a teenage Mbappé was still lighting up their attack. But Monaco came into this one with nothing to lose, especially with PSG missing last year’s Ballon d’Or winner, Ousmane Dembélé, through injury.
In the early stages, Monaco looked like they might pull off a shock. Coulibaly missed a golden chance, blazing over from Akliouche’s cutback, and Balogun forced a sharp save from Safonov. PSG hit the bar through Bradley Barcola, but it was Monaco who got the breakthrough just before halftime. Safonov’s half-clearance didn’t relieve the pressure, and Akliouche eventually slotted home after a neat layoff from Coulibaly.
Everything changed after Coulibaly’s red card. Booked minutes earlier, he lunged late into a challenge on Hakimi, and the referee didn’t hesitate with the second yellow; off he went. PSG took full advantage, scoring from the resulting free kick and then again through Kvaratskhelia after a scramble.
Monaco almost dragged it into extra time, but in the end, they’re out, knocked out at this stage for a second straight year. PSG, though, keep their title defence alive and can start dreaming of Budapest.
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