Manchester United face Barcelona in the tie of the round as the Europa League play-off draw is made… with fellow Champions League dropouts Juventus battling Nantes and six-time champions Sevilla taking on PSV
- Manchester United will take on Barcelona in the next round of the Europa League
- Juventus will face FC Nantes as they look to discover some positive form
- Jose Mourinho’s Roma will play Salzburg, with Ajax to take on Union Berlin
- Six-time champions Sevilla drew current Eredivisie leaders PSV Eindhoven
Manchester United will face Barcelona in the playoff round of the Europa League to determine who advances to the knockout stages – with the tie featuring eight Champions League titles between the two teams.
The draw for the playoff stage of the competition took place in Switzerland on Monday lunchtime, with several big hitters in the draw either via qualification in second place in their group or through dropping out of the Champions League.
United against Barcelona was the headline tie of the draw, but Juventus and Ajax were among the other teams to find out their fate ahead of the playoff round.
Manchester United drew Barcelona in a battle of two giants in the Europa League play-offs
The draw for the next round of the Europa League took place in Switzerland on Monday
The full draw featured some interesting ties but was headlined by Man United’s fixture
Juventus will play French side Nantes, with Ajax, who dropped into the competition after failing to qualify from Liverpool’s Champions League group, set to take on Union Berlin of Germany.
Jose Mourinho’s Roma, who won the Europa Conference League last season, will take on Salzburg, with six-time champions Sevilla set to face PSV.
Philippe Clement’s Monaco side were drawn against Bayern Leverkusen, Sporting Lisbon will face FC Midtjylland, and Shakhtar Donetsk will play Stade Rennais.
Xavi’s Barcelona, who were the first side drawn, dropped down from the Champions league
Barcelona were the first team out the hat and gasps could almost be heard around the footballing world as Manchester United’s name followed in the next ball.
In 2008-09 and 2010-11 the fixture was the Champions League final, but both sides have struggled to remain at the top of Europe’s pedestal in the years since.
Former Fulham and West Brom favourite Zoltan Gera was on hand to draw the names out in the event hosted by Giorgio Marchetti, with several officials in attendance in Nyon.
Former Fulham and West Brom favourite Zoltan Gera drew the teams out in Switzerland
Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United will face a tough test in their bid to win the competition
The eight group winners, including Arsenal, will rejoin the competition in the next round
The play-off round features 16 teams that either came second in their Europa League group or third in their Champions League group, with teams all playing a side originally from the other competition.
It was also impossible for anyone to face a team from their country at this stage.
The winners of the ties will progress to the last 16 of the competition where the winners of the Europa League groups, including Arsenal, will be waiting.
The ties will take place over a two-week period, with the first legs on February 16 and the second on February 23.
