Liverpool, Arsenal and Aston Villa all remain in the Champions League knockout stages, with wins for the trio potentially boosting their English rivals’ hopes of qualifying for next year’s competition
Liverpool and Arsenal’s draw for the rest of the Champions League knockouts looks set to hand the Premier League an extra place in next year’s competition.
With Europe’s top club competition being expanded from this season, additional qualification spots are on offer. Three English clubs remain in the knockouts, with Aston Villa joining Liverpool and the Gunners.
The Reds face a difficult draw against Paris Saint-Germain, while Arsenal will face PSV Eindhoven and Aston Villa will take on Club Brugge. The trio have all ended up on the same side of the draw.
That means Liverpool could take on Villa in the quarter-finals, and one of those two sides could face the Gunners in the semi-final. If the three teams do make it into the last eight, that would boost England’s co-efficient ranking.
Regardless of competition, each win is worth two coefficient points, a draw gets you one point, and you get nothing for a defeat. If a match goes to extra time, the score after 120 minutes is used. So, penalties are not taken into account if the game is drawn, as they are used to determine the tie rather than the individual match.
England currently leads the way with 106.6 points, with Italy second on 93.4 and Spain third on 89.1. An extra Champions League place will be awarded to the top two countries in those rankings.
Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid have been drawn together for the last 16, with Bayern Munich facing Bayer Leverkusen. That deals a serious blow to both Spain and Germany’s hopes of rising up the co-efficient rankings.
HAVE YOUR SAY! Who will win the Champions League? Comment below.
Germany currently sit fourth, with Borussia Dortmund their final representative in the knockout stages. For Spain to overtake England in the rankings they would likely need one of their clubs to win the Champions League, and hope English sides do not reach the latter stages.
The points earned by clubs from the same domestic league are added up and divided by the number of clubs the league has in Europe – England and Spain have seven while Italy has eight. Manchester United and Tottenham have reached the last 16 of the Europa League, while Chelsea have made it to the same stage of the Conference League.
Bonus points are also available to clubs playing in the Champions League. England have an advantage with three teams left, particularly as Liverpool could play Villa in the quarter-final to guarantee at least one English club in the semis.
If England are awarded an additional place, that would mean five teams qualify for the Champions League next season. That extra place would be handed to the team finishing fifth in the Premier League – currently Bournemouth.
Last season, it was the Bundesliga and Serie A which received the extra places, with Borussia Dortmund and Bologna the beneficiaries. If Italy again receives an additional spot, Lazio would receive it as they sit fifth in Serie A.
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Learn more
Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle in an unbeatable new deal that saves £192 and includes 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.