Champions League: Here’s a handy guide to potential round of 16 draw at a glance

The final match-week in the Champions League had quite a few thrills on offer. In Group A, Paris Saint-Germain were held by Ludogrets which paved the way for Arsenal to seize top spot. In group B, Besiktas spectacularly crumbled in Ukraine, losing to Dinamo Kiev 6-0, and having two of their players red carded. Honours were even in Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund’s top spot deciding game, leaving the Spanish giants in second place in Group F. Sevilla and FC Porto also secured their qualification with wins against Lyon and Leicester City respectively. However, now that the last 16 are in place, questions begin to arise about the upcoming draw. The competition’s rules dictate that teams from the same nation or the same group cannot play each other again in the round  of 16, while the teams that qualified in first place will only play a team that qualified in second place from its group. First placed teams will also play the first leg of their tie away from home, giving them the home advantage in the return leg. Here’s a handy guide to simplify the potential clashes in the round of 16 of the Champions League.

This means that despite topping Group A, Arsenal could potentially face Bayern Munich or Real Madrid – both giants in their respective leagues – and will looking to avoid prolonging their miserable last 16 record, wherein they have been eliminated in the same stage of the competition for the past six seasons. Bayern, however, seemed to be relishing the prospect of a clash against Arsenal.

. @Arsenal @ChampionsLeague Should we just book our travel to London now? 🏆 pic.twitter.com/qkZvZZLsWQ

— 🇺🇸 FC Bayern US 🇨🇦 (@FCBayernUS) December 7, 2016

After finishing second in their respective groups, Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid will also be looking to avoid particularly stern tests in the first knockout round with teams like Barcelona, Juventus, Atletico Madrid,  and Borussia Dortmund looking in fine form. In fact, Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane himself said that he hopes to avoid a Juventus reunion in the last 16. But we will have to wait till Monday to see how the draws pan out.