Europa League last 16: Liverpool’s next fixtures – and who they could play

Liverpool had already booked their spot in the Europa League last 16 before their 2-1 defeat to Union SG, but it will now be a long wait for their next game.

Jurgen Klopp named the club’s youngest-ever side for a European tie on Thursday night – and technically the third-youngest ever – which explains the result.

A disjointed performance led to a 2-1 loss, though Liverpool still had chances to equalise late on and came away from Belgium in positive spirits.

They knew already, before their trip to Lotto Park, that they were in the hat for the last 16, having guaranteed their place as Group E winners in the previous tie.

So when is the last 16 and who will be in it?

 

When is the Europa League last 16 draw?

The draw for the Europa League last 16 will take place on February 23 at 11am GMT, with the ceremony held at UEFA’s headquarters in Nyon.

 

Who will be in it?

There are only eight of the 16 teams already qualified, those being the winners of their Europa League groups.

Liverpool are joined in the hat by West Ham, Brighton, Rangers, Atalanta, Villarreal, Slavia Prague and Bayer Leverkusen.

But they cannot play any of those teams, instead being drawn against eight teams determined via the knockout playoffs.

The knockout playoffs will see the eight sides to finish second in their Europa League groups play the eight who finished third in their Champions League groups.

SC Freiburg, Marseille, Sparta Prague, Sporting CP, Toulouse, Rennes, AS Roma and Qarabag will be unseeded for those ties on February 15 and 22.

Galatasaray, Lens, SC Braga, Benfica, Feyenoord, AC Milan, Young Boys and Shakhtar Donetsk will be seeded.

 

When will Liverpool play their next fixtures?

With the knockout playoffs taking place in February, Liverpool have an almost three-month wait before they play again in the Europa League.

The last 16 will be held over two legs on March 7 and 14, with the Reds playing at home in the second leg.

After that, the quarter-finals will be on April 11 and 18, the semi-finals on May 2 and 9, then the final in Dublin on May 22.