Europa League draw: Celta face Lyon, Betis to play Panathinaikos in round of 16 | OneFootball

Celta will face Lyon in the Europa League last 16, with the first leg at Balaídos, while Betis meet Panathinaikos and have the return in Seville.

As reported by Superdeporte, the draw at UEFA headquarters in Nyon set first legs for 12 March and returns on 19 March, and laid out the route to the Istanbul final.

Panathinaikos, coached by Spaniard Rafa Benítez, sit fifth domestically and ousted Viktoria Plzen on penalties in the previous round. Lyon feature Endrick, the Brazilian forward on loan from Real Madrid, and are third in France after skipping the knockout playoff as a top-eight seed.

If they progress, Betis would face the winner of Ferencvaros against Braga, a tie that begins in Hungary and concludes in Portugal. Celta would meet the victor of Genk against Freiburg, sides not among the theoretical favourites for the trophy.

Celta, who eliminated PAOK Salonika, knew their opponent would be a stern test, either Lyon or Aston Villa.

On the other side of the draw, the winner of Stuttgart against Porto will play Nottingham Forest or Midtjylland in the quarter-finals, with the Danish club one of the surprises of the tournament. Stuttgart are fourth in the Bundesliga and Porto lead the Portuguese league.

The winner of Lille against Aston Villa will face whoever comes through the all-Italian tie between Roma, fourth in Serie A, and Bologna, eighth.

Source: Superdeporte