Premier League title hopefuls Arsenal are the bookmakers’ favourites to win the 2022/23 UEFA Europa League after an impressive start to the competition in which the Gunners won five of their first six games.
Defeat at early Eredivisie leaders PSV Eindhoven was the only hitch as Mikel Arteta’s squad did the double over Norwegian team Bodo/Glimt and Swiss side FC Zurich, as well as beating their Dutch rivals at the Emirates.
All of which means the two-time finalists will return to the Europa League in confident mood when it resumes in early 2023.
Who’s up next for Arsenal and when are they playing? The Sporting News has the details.
MORE: Why did Unai Emery fail at Arsenal? Why Gunners fired Aston Villa’s Spanish manager in 2019
When is the next round of the Europa League?
The next round of the Europa League will be the knockout round play-offs – a set of eight two-legged ties between the runners-up in each group taking place on February 16 and 23.
There are some tantalising ties involved, including a reprise of a fixture that has twice formed the Champions League final when Manchester United play Barcelona.
Unlike PSV, who have been drawn against Sevilla after finishing second in Group A, Arsenal are not taking part in the round because they topped the table.
When is the draw for the Europa League round of 16?
The draw will take place the day after the knockout round play-offs conclude, on February 24.
The winning teams from that round will be placed into a draw with the table-toppers from the group stage, taking place at 13:00 CET.
When do Arsenal play next in the Europa League?
After learning their next opponents in that round of 16 draw, Arsenal are scheduled to be back in action on March 9 at the Emirates Stadium, with the second leg of the round of 16 tie away on March 16.
Which teams are in the Europa League last 16?
The following teams are already assured of a place in the round of 16 draw and will be seeded, guaranteeing them a home match in the first leg of the two-legged tie to reach the quarterfinals.
- Arsenal (England)
- Betis (Spain)
- Fenerbahce (Turkey)
- Ferencvaros (Hungary)
- Feyenoord (Netherlands)
- Freiburg (Germany)
- Real Sociedad (Spain)
- Union Saint-Gilloise (Belgium)
Who could Arsenal play next in the Europa League?
As well as the teams above who are already in the draw, Arsenal could be drawn against one of the winners of the knockout round ties.
- Barcelona (Spain) vs Manchester United (England)
- Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine) vs Rennes (France)
- Ajax (Netherlands) vs Union Berlin (Germany)
- Salzburg (Austria) vs Roma (Italy)
- Juventus (Italy) vs Nantes (France)
- Sporting CP (Portugal) vs Midtjylland (Denmark)
- Bayer Leverkusen (Germany) vs Monaco (France)
- Sevilla (Spain) vs PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands)
Arsenal cannot be drawn against Premier League rivals Man United because the two clubs are from the same national association.
On the date of the knockout round playoffs draw, Barcelona were the team with the highest UEFA coefficient ranking (7) potentially in line to face Arsenal, who were ranked 23rd.
French relegation battlers Nantes were the lowest-ranked potential opponents for Arsenal – standing a lowly 118th.
Hits: 0
