Expert reveals the 'likely' Champions League round-of-16 draw and fans are in shock at some of the fixtures

The projected draw for the UEFA Champions League round of 16 has emerged ahead of the last match week.

This season, the Champions League underwent a huge revamp as the traditional group stage has been changed into one big league phase.

Instead of playing twice against three teams home and away, clubs now play eight matches against different opponents, four at home and four away.

Teams that finish in the top eight will automatically qualify for the last 16, with sides finishing in positions 9-24 needing to play a two-legged play-off to decide their fate.

With just one match week left, the league table is starting to take shape.

For example, Premier League leaders Liverpool are guaranteed a top-two finish after winning all seven of their matches so far. However, Manchester City must win against Club Brugge next week to keep their hopes alive.

So far, nine teams have already been knocked out of the competition, in the shapes of Slovan Bratislava, Young Boys, RB Salzburg, Sturm Graz, Crvena Zvezda, Girona, RB Leipzig, Sparta Praha and Bologna.

Ahead of the last round of matches, the projected draw for the round of 16 has emerged on social media.

As per Football Rankings, Liverpool and Barcelona have been projected to face either AS Monaco, Celtic, Feyenoord or Brest.

Arsenal and Inter Milan could be in for a nightmare draw, with the likes of Real Madrid, Juventus, Sporting Clube de Portugal and Paris Saint Germain as potential opponents.

City, whose fate hangs in the balance, could face PSV Eindhoven in the play-offs before taking on Atletico Madrid or AC Milan.

The other English side, Aston Villa, could come up against Club Brugge, VfB Stuttgart, Atalanta or Bayern Munich.

🙂 Good news for Liverpool/Barcelona:

❌ They are not projected anymore to face Real Madrid or Man City in the Round of 16.

🙁 Bad news for Arsenal/Inter:

✅ They are now projected to face one of these four in the Round of 16:

🇪🇸 Real Madrid
🇮🇹 Juventus
🇵🇹 Sporting CP
🇫🇷 PSG pic.twitter.com/NTPybKZ750

— Football Rankings (@FootRankings) January 23, 2025

Of course, it has to be said that anything could happen in football and that the projected draw is only a prediction.

Meanwhile, data has revealed that defending champions Madrid is Arsenal's 'most likely' opponent in the round of 16.

The Champions League will return next week with fixtures being played on Tuesday and Wednesday.