It’s December 18, it’s nearly Christmas, and so that means a much bigger and holier day is upon us – Champions League last 16 draw day.
The competition’s reformatting from next season onwards means this is the last we’ll see the draw in this current guise of pitting group winners versus the runners up. Get ready to learn about the Swiss Model’s top eight against play-off victors over the next few months, people.
Today’s draw is scheduled to kick-off at 11am GMT and 12pm local time, but it wouldn’t be UEFA without some kind of painstaking rigmarole to preface the main event.
Follow our live blog below and discover the key details you need to know about the draw.
11:30 – Thank you for following along. You can read further coverage about the Champions League last 16 draw elsewhere on 90min!
11:21 – The draw is over! Here are your ties for the Champions League last 16:
11:20 – Reigning champions Manchester City will take on Copenhagen, who helped eliminate Manchester United at the group stage.
11:19 – 14-time winners Real Madrid will face Bundesliga outfit RB Leipzig.
11:18 – Not for the first time in recent history, Lazio have been drawn with Bayern Munich.
11:17 – Peter Bosz will return to Borussia Dortmund with his high-flying PSV Eindhoven side.
11:16 – An intriguing tie awaits between Atletico Madrid and last season’s finalists Inter.
11:15 – Real Sociedad‘s reward for winning their group is a tie with Paris Saint-Germain.
11:14 – Barcelona will take on Italian champions Napoli.
11:12 – Porto have been drawn against Arsenal in the first matchup.
11:10 – The draw will now begin!
11:07 – Chelsea legend and 2012 winner John Terry is out to lend a helping hand with the draw. He is, sadly, not in full kit.
11:00 – UEFA have kicked off proceedings. And by that I mean the presentation is underway. The actual draw is still yet to start. You have time to go and make a coffee or something.
10:55 – Before the draw gets started, here are a few interesting tidbits:
The eight group winners heading into Monday’s draw are Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Real Madrid, Real Sociedad, Atletico Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Manchester City and Barcelona. They will be drawn as away teams for the first leg.
The runners up who will be drawn as the home sides for the first leg are Copenhagen, PSV Eindhoven, Napoli, Inter, Lazio, Paris Saint-Germain, RB Leipzig and Porto.
The first legs of the last 16 ties will be played on 13, 14, 20 and 21 February, with the second legs taking place on 5, 6, 12 and 13…
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