Who Could Liverpool Face In The Champions League Round Of 16?

Liverpool qualified for the Champions League Round of 16 with a 2-1 victory over Lille on Tuesday night and ers will be keen to see what kind of fixtures the Reds in the later stages of the competition.

Arne Slot’s side new league phase format of the competition.

All Liverpool had to do was finish in the top-eight to avoid a play-off round to reach the last-16 of the competition.

However, where you finish in the league phase does matter. As, where you place in the league creates the knockout bracket – unlike previous seasons where there would be open draws.

The new “seeding” system means the highest-placed teams can’t face each other until the latter stages of the knockout round.

So should Barcelona remain in the top two alongside Liverpool, then both of those teams won’t be able to play each other until the final.

The teams in third and fourth – currently Arsenal and Inter Milan – wouldn’t be able to play the top-two until the semi-finals.

However, the value of being placed high in the table might not be quite the reward that would normally be expected. Liverpool could face some difficult fixtures in the Champions League Round of 16.

Securing our spot in the last 16 ✅✨ pic.twitter.com/lNQNouysss

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) January 21, 2025

Liverpool Champions League Fixtures: Who Could They Play In The Round Of 16?

By finishing in the top two, Liverpool will play home and away fixtures against a side that finishes between 15th and 18th in the Champions League Round of 16.

The two-legged play-off round will see the side who finishes 15th play the 18th ranked team, while 16th will go against 17th.

At present, the teams occupying the spots between 15th and 18th are Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Juventus and Celtic

Liverpool have already played against Real Madrid this season but have not had fixtures against any of the other three sides occupying those positions in the Champions League.

However, a host of top clubs could still occupy those positions by the end of the league phase.

Borussia Dortmund are just ahead of that zone in 14th place, while PSG are close in 22nd place.

But Liverpool could still theoretically play anyone as high as fifth-placed Atletico Madrid in the Round of 16.

That means Liverpool could also face tricky opponents like AC Milan, Atalanta, Bayer Leverkusen and Aston Villa if those sides slipped down the table in the final week.

There won’t be any chance of the Reds facing Manchester City however, who currently sit in the ‘relegation’ zone in 25th. The highest Pep Guardiola’s side can finish is 19th.

Full List Of Sides Liverpool Could Still Play In The Last-16

• Atletico Madrid
• AC Milan
• Atalanta
• Bayer Leverkusen
• Aston Villa
• Monaco
• Feyenoord
• Lille
• Brest
• Borussia Dortmund
• Bayern Munich (currently 15th)
• Real Madrid (currently 16th)
• Juventus (currently 17th)
• Celtic (currently 18th)
• PSV Eindhoven
• Club Brugge
• Benfica
• PSG
• Sporting
• Stuttgart
• Feyenoord
• Stuttgart

When Will Liverpool Discover Their Last-16 Opponent?

Liverpool will be keeping an eye out on the Champions League play-off fixtures which take place on February 11/12 and 18/19.

It will then be a 50/50 chance of facing the winner of the 15th v 18th clash, or the 16th vs 17th tie.

The Reds will discover which of the two winning play-off sides they face in the last-16 draw on February 21.

This is a long wait compared to previous years under the old Champions League format when the last-16 draw was made in December.