While talks of Brexit rage on day-by-day, that is not the case in football. All seven of English clubs have progressed through the group stages of the UEFA Champions and UEFA Europa League.
With the next round draws for both competitions being just hours away, lets take a look at the stats for the teams, and the possible opponents they might face
Chelsea
Teams faced in Group stage: Valencia, Lille, Ajax
It was always going to be a struggle for Chelsea this season. A transfer ban in the summer, Lampard’s first season with the team, and a squad consisting of many young talents, all guaranteed that the Blues would have to give it their all to qualify. And they did just that.
Tottenham Hotspur
Teams faced in Group stage: Bayern Munich, Olympiakos, Red Star Belegrade
Expectations were high for last year’s runner-ups. A favorable draw against Olympiakos and Red Star, ensured that only Bayern were Spurs’ genuine threat in the group. And what a threat they proved to be with the Munich club thrashing Tottenham with a 2-7 score-line at White Hart Lane. Despite this however, and the sacking of Mauricio Pochettino, the club managed to go through.
Manchester City
Teams faced in Group stage: Shakhtar Donetsk, Atalanta, Dinamo Zagreb
The current Premier League champions have a history of easily getting out of group stages but then stumbling on later stages. With one half of this already being true, the Citizens will hope to have a better run this year.
Liverpool
Teams faced in Group stage: Napoli, Genk, Red Bull Salzburg
Last year’s Champions League winners, are having an incredible season thus far, with the Reds being top of the Premier League by a large margin. Their UCL campaign however has had its ups and downs, with Liverpool having to fight until the final game to ensure their qualification to the round of 16.
Arsenal
Teams faced in Group stage: Eintracht Frankfurt, Standard Liege, Vitoria SC
The second English Club to sack their manager (Unai Emery) before the group stage was completed, however, this did not stop them from qualifying The Gunners had a relatively easy passage to the next round of the Europa League, with their biggest threat being themselves, showing glimpses of brilliance at one point, then making silly mistakes the next one.
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Teams faced in Group stage: Braga, Besiktas, Slovan Bratislava
What a couple of seasons it has been for Wolves. Promotion to the Premier League, Europa League qualification, and now going to the Round of 32, even as the second seed. It is up to the players themselves how far they can go into the competition.
Manchester United
Teams faced in Group stage: AZ Alkmaar, Partizan, Astana
The Reds had a favourable draw for the Group stage, and the only reason for them not to go through would be due to a lack of trying from their behalf. This allowed Man Utd to give match-time to a lot of their young talent, such as Mason Greenwood
What does this mean?
The draws for the UCL Round of 16, and the UEL Round of 32, which are tomorrow, are very important in ensuring that the English clubs don’t face the hardest of opposition. Here’s a video we made that shows their possible opponents.
You can watch the draw tomorrow, live at 12:00 on various websites.
Words, Infographics and VIdeo by: Alex Papagiannis
Featured image by: alexlanting on Unsplash