Who Chelsea can get in the Champions League last 16 draw
Chelsea are through to the last 16 of the 2021/22 Champions League, with fans now eagerly awaiting who the club's next opponent will be.
This is everything you need to know about the last 16 draw and which clubs are available for the Blues to face...
How Chelsea qualified for the Champions League last 16
A stoppage-time equaliser conceded against Zenit St Petersburg on matchday six cost Chelsea top spot in Group H. That result meant Juventus' win over Malmo on the same night saw them able to leapfrog the Blues, despite Chelsea beating them 4-0 at Stamford Bridge in the previous game.
With four wins from the six games, Chelsea's tally of 13 points would have been enough to win some of the other groups. Their only defeat was against Juventus in Turin on matchday two.
Who Chelsea can get in the Champions League last 16 draw
The draw splits group winners and runners-up into seeds and non-seeds. At this stage all group winners will be kept apart, while no club be drawn with another from the same country. Chelsea also cannot be paired with Juventus by virtue of qualifying from the same group.
With Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City also obviously off the table, Chelsea will be randomly drawn against any of the other four group winners available to them. That means they will be facing one of Ajax, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich or Lille.
Failing to win the group is a blow because only Lille might be considered favourable from those options. Real and Bayern have eyes on winning the trophy, while Ajax cannot be underestimated after recording maximum points in the group stage.
When is the Champions League last 16 draw?
UEFA will make the draw for the Champions League last 16 on Monday 13 December 2021. It will start from 11am in the UK (12pm CET) and will be live streamed on UEFA’s website and YouTube channel.
When will the Champions League last 16 be played?
Heading into 2022, last 16 first leg ties will be split across consecutive weeks on either 15/16 February or 22/23 February. The return legs will follow on 8/9 March or 15/16 March.
As group runners-up, Chelsea will play the first leg at Stamford Bridge.
This is the first season in which the away goals rule has been scrapped, so extra-time is guaranteed if the aggregate score is level at the end of the second leg.
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