Liverpool, Arsenal and Aston Villa's routes to the Champions League final

The English sides left in the Champions League have learnt their route to the final following the draw for the knockout rounds.

Liverpool, Arsenal and Aston Villa all progressed straight to the round of 16 after finishing in the top eight of the new League Phase, with Arne Slot's men topping the table, Arsenal finishing third, and Aston Villa scraping in in eight place.

One of the changes to the competition this year is seeding, with teams finishing first and second being unable to play each other until the final.

The draw has also plotted the teams entire route to the Champions League final, meaning each teams knows all their potential opponents right up to the final in Munich.

An important factor to note is due to the seeding the configuration of fixtures and potential opponents was already somewhat distinguishable.

As part of the play off draw teams from 9th-16th were paired (9th and 10th, 11th and 12th, etc) with teams from 17th-24th. teams finishing 9th/10th could be drawn against teams who finished 23rd and 24th, a little bit like the Championship play-offs.

This then corresponded with their potential opponents in the round of 16.

For example, Liverpool finished 1st and Barcelona second. They are now seeded and cannot meet until the final. They could face the teams who finished 15th, 16th, 17th and 18th.

Each team who finished 1st-8th could play one of two teams, and will not be able to meet their pair until the final.

Liverpool's route to the Champions League final

Arne Slot successful start to life on Merseyside was underscored by The Reds topping the Champions League League Phase. They head into the knockouts as top seeds and were able to draw either Paris Saint-Germain or Benfica following both teams progress from the play-offs.

They have been pitted against PSG, who ran out 10-0 winners over Brest in the play-offs, and it will be the first time the teams have met since the 2018/19 season, the last time Liverpool won the competition.

As the draw plotted each teams route to the final, Liverpool know should they beat PSG they will face either Club Brugge from Belgium, or Aston Villa. they have already face each other twice this season, with the latest instalment being an entertaining 2-2 draw at Villa Park.

Should they progress from the quarter-final, they will meet one of PSV, Arsenal, Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid. Of course each tie comes with its own spice, but a potential Champions League semi-final showdown with Arsenal would see the second leg played less than four days before their Premier League clash at Anfield.

Arsenal's route to the Champions League final

Mikel Arteta's men find themselves in the Champions League knockouts for the second season in a row, and they will be hoping to improve on last seasons quarter-final defeat to Bayern Munich.

A trip to the Netherlands was on the cards as Arsenal could have faced either PSV or Feyenoord, with the former being the tie the Gunners were handed. They faced off twice in the 2023/24 season, with Arsenal winning 4-0 at The Emirates, but held to a 1-1 draw at PSV Stadion.

Should Arsenal overcome PSV they will take on either Real Madrid or Ateltico Madrid. They last time they faced any of these teams was in 2018, when Atletico Madrid beat them in the Europa League semi-finals.

You have to go all the way back to 2006 for the only time they faced Real Madrid, where a single Thierry Henry goal over two legs saw them through to the Champions league quarter-finals.

Should they progress to the semi-finals, one of Liverpool, Paris Saint-Germain, Aston Villa or Club Brugge will be waiting for them. The Gunners have already beaten PSG this season, running out 2-0 winners at The Emirates.

However, if they were to meet Liverpool, an 10 day showdown between the two clubs would commence, with the semi-finals acting as the precursor to what could be a title deciding fixture at Anfield on May 10/11.

Aston Villa's route to the Champions League final

Aston Villa are taking part in their first Champions League/European Cup campaign since 1983. After a sensational group stage that saw wins over Bayern Munich and Celtic at Villa Park they will embark on the knockout stages.

The draw saw them pitted against Club Brugge in the round of 16, a team they have already faced in the competition. The Villans were 1-0 losers that day, with a Tyrone Mings moment of madness handing the Belgian side a penalty.

Should they advance from this clash, they will face either Liverpool or Paris Saint-Germain. They have never faced PSG in their history, while they are quite familiar with Liverpool. They recently held The Reds to a 2-2 draw at Villa Park in the Premier League.

A magical journey to the semi-finals would see them greeted by one of PSV, Arsenal, Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid. They have never faced PSV or Real Madrid in any competition, whilst their only meeting with Atletico Madrid came in 1998 in the UEFA Cup quarter-finals, where Aston Villa lost on away goals (remember them?).

Arsenal are familiar foe and they have only lost one of their last four meetings with them in the Premier League, doing the double over them in the 2023/24 season.