In the latest draw released this afternoon, the last 16 looks like it will be a tough affair for several teams, especially those like Arsenal that finished second in their group. Scraping though on the last day of the group stage, thanks to a 3-0 away victory against Olympiakos in Greece, Arsenal managed to get into the knock-out stage through the skin of its teeth.
A little more fortunate, fellow Londoners Chelsea will face Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in the knockout stages for the third season running, while Manchester City's opponents are Dynamo Kiev. Arsenal were always vulnerable to a difficult draw having scraped through their qualifying group as runners-up and the nightmare scenario was confirmed when they were pulled out with the current champions.
Barcelona eliminated Arsene Wenger's side in successive years in 2010 and 2011 and denied the Gunners the trophy with two late goals in the 2006 final at the Stade de France. This time around, Arsenal will face odds to reverse those results against opponents boasting two of the three Ballon d'Or nominees in Argentine striker Lionel Messi and Brazilian playmaker Neymar.
Chelsea, on paper at least, have been handed one of the more difficult draws possible as group winners and must take on a PSG side that knocked them out at the same stage last season. Both teams also met in the quarter-finals the previous year, with Chelsea winning that one on away goals.
Manchester City's tie against the Ukrainians represents a chance to get beyond the last 16 for the first time. To make things easier for the Premiership champions, their away leg will be played in an empty stadium as punishment for previous crowd disturbances and racist behaviour among Dynamo Kiev supporters.
Full last 16 fixture list
Dynamo Kyiv v Man City
Benfica v Zenit
PSV v Atlético
Juventus v Bayern
Arsenal v Barcelona
Paris v Chelsea
Roma v Madrid
Gent v Wolfsburg
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