When is the Europa League draw and next round of fixtures as Man United qualify in top 8
Manchester United's Europa League fate sat firmly in their own hands as they headed into the final matchday of the competition.
After beating FCSB 2-0 in Romania, the Reds confirmed their fourth place in the table, taking an automatic qualifying spot for the knockout stages.
With the likes of Tottenham, Lazio, Athletic Bilbao and Eintracht Frankfurt also in the top eight, MEN Sport has taken a look at everything you need to know about the upcoming Europa League draws.
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When is the Europa League draw?
The next Europa League draw takes place on Friday, January 31 at midday. This draw will be for the knockout phase play-offs and shall involve the teams that finish between ninth and 24th in the final table.
Those finishing first to eighth will progress directly to the round of 16 while those finishing 25th and below will be out of the Europa League entirely.
How does the knockout phase play-off draw work?
Teams finishing between ninth and 16th will be seeded for the draw and shall face an unseeded team between 17th and 24th in a two-legged play-off. In principle, the seeded team will play the second leg at home.
Clubs shall be paired with another team in the draw so, should United finish outside the top eight, they will have an idea of the club they will face in the play-offs. For instance, the teams that finish ninth and tenth shall play a team that finished either 23rd or 24th.
Teams from the same association can face each other in the play-offs.
When are the knockout phase play-offs?
The knockout phase play-offs shall begin and end next month. The first leg will be played on Thursday, February 13 with the return leg played a week later on February 20.
When is the knockout draw?
Should United either finish in the top eight or progress through the play-offs, they will discover their route to the final on Friday, February 21 with the round of 16, quarter-final and semi-final draws taking place that day.