Europa League: Barcelona’s possible opponents revealed

Barcelona‘s possible opponents in the Europa League have been revealed.

The Spanish giants were relegated from the Champions League following Inter Milan’s 4-0 victory over Viktoria Plzen on Wednesday.

Barca now find themselves eliminated from the group stages of the Champions League for the second consecutive year.

They must now enter a playoff to feature in the the Europa League’s round of 16, where the Catalan side will take on other third-placed teams from the Champions League, as well as those that qualified second in the Europa League group stage.

They will not be eligible to feature against other Spanish sides due to UEFA regulations.

Current eligible third-placed teams in the Champions League include: Ajax, Eintracht Frankfurt, Red Bull Salzburg, Shakhtar Donetsk and Juventus.

Runners-up in the Europa League at this time include: PSV, Rennes, Ludogrets, Braga, Manchester United, Midtylland, Qarabag and Trabzonspor.

Barca crashed out to the Europa League on Wednesday night without kicking a ball. They needed Viktoria Plzen to defeat second-placed Inter at San Siro, before going on to win against group leaders Bayern Munich at Camp Nou. The Italians were victorious, however, confirming Barca’s third-place finish and relegating them to the Europa League for the second year running.

Kicked out before kick-off

Barca’s elimination was confirmed with two group games remaining. This is their home clash against Bayern this Wednesday ahead of their final group game away in Plzen.

Two goals before half-time sealed Inter’s victory over their Czech opposition at the San Siro. Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Edin Dzeko both found the net to help Inter progress. Dzeko and substitute Romelu Lukaku added further goals in the second period. Even if Barcelona win their final two group games and Inter lose at Bayern, the Italian side’s superior head-to-head record ensures they would still go through.