Not only did this draw decided the play-off ties, it also designated each team to either the silver or blue path, thus making clear their paths through the quarter-finals and semi-finals, through to the final, with there to be no more draws this season as a result. It means that each of the four teams that sealed an automatic berth through to the last eight - Barcelona, Lyon, Chelsea and Bayern Munich - know which matches to watch in February to keep an eye on their next opponents in the Champions League.
Chelsea have been assigned to the blue path, to face Arsenal or Leuven in the last eight, with eight-time UWCL winners Lyon allocated to the same side. The French giants will face either Wolfsburg or Juventus in their quarter-final, with the winners of that tie and the Chelsea one to meet in the semi-finals.
On the silver path, Barcelona, winners of three of the last five editions of this competition but defeated in the final last season by Arsenal, will await the winners of a clash between Paris FC and, most notably, Real Madrid, with Bayern Munich then to face Man Utd or Atletico. The winners of those two quarter-finals will then face off in the last four.