Liverpool have discovered who they must overcome after UEFA Youth League draws made
Liverpool have discovered their route to the UEFA Youth League final after the full draw for the knockout stages was made.
The Reds automatically won through to the last 16 by finishing top of a group that included Atletico Madrid, Porto and AC Milan.
Marc Bridge-Wilkinson’s under-19 side will now entertain Belgian side Genk in the round of 16, with the tie taking place on either Tuesday, March 1 or Wednesday, March 2.
All games in the knockout stages are one-offs, with no extra time being played should the outcome end in a draw and the tie instead going straight to penalties.
Genk caused a stir in the play-off round last week then they thrashed Chelsea 5-1 at home, the Londoners having come from 3-0 down to beat Liverpool 4-3 in the FA Youth Cup less than two weeks earlier.
If Liverpool win through against the Belgians, they will then travel to either AZ Alkmaar or Juventus in the quarter-finals later in March.
The semi-finals and final take place in Nyon in Switzerland towards the end of April.
If the Reds progress to the last four, they will take on one of Dynamo Kiev, Sporting Lisbon, Midtjylland or Benfica.
The other half of the draw includes heavyweights such as Real Madrid, Atletico, Paris Saint-Germain, Borussia Dortmund and Manchester United.
Kaide Gordon, Tyler Morton, Conor Bradley, Max Woltman, Billy Koumetio, Melkamu Frauendorf, Owen Beck – who have all featured for the first team this season – are among players to have starred for Liverpool in the group stage.
The Reds’ best finish in the UEFA Youth League was in 2018 when they were beaten by Manchester City on penalties in the quarter-finals. They lost in the last 16 at Dinamo Zagreb and Benfica in the subsequent two seasons.
