Liverpool’s Champions League exit on Tuesday evening at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain leaves only two English clubs left in the competition.
Arsenal and Aston Villa both take healthy first-leg leads into their return ties on Wednesday – Mikel Arteta’s side beat PSV 7-1 in Eindhoven, while Villa are 3-1 up against Club Brugge.
As part of the tournament’s new format this season, clubs are assigned their path to the final from the first knockout round, meaning Arsenal and Villa know who stands between them and the trophy.
If both sides hold onto their leads in the home return legs, here are their routes to European glory.
Arsenal’s quarter-final draw and path to the final
Arsenal know the Champions League is their only remaining hope of silverware, one which would consign the disappointments of the rest of the season to a footnote in history.
But their route to the trophy is treacherous, starting with a quarter-final against one of the two Madrid powerhouses.
Real Madrid are 2-1 up against Atletico after the first leg at the Bernabeu, with Brahim Diaz’s winner separating the two sides. The two sides are second and third in La Liga, with Atletico one point behind the 13-time champions.
If Arteta can plot his way past two of the competition’s most successful sides of the past 15 years, the most likely semi-final opponent will be PSG, who are set to face Aston Villa in the last eight.
Both clubs would present different but serious challenges – PSG’s victory over Liverpool showed just how far they have come since being beaten 2-0 at the Emirates last October.
Meanwhile Arsenal have won just one of their past four games against Unai Emery‘s Villa, a 2-0 win last August.
Should they come through that challenge, one of five sides await. Arteta would fancy his chances against Lille or Dortmund, but any of Barcelona, Bayern Munich or Inter would be fearsome opponents.
Quarter-final: Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid
Semi-final: PSG, Aston Villa or Club Bruges
Final: Barcelona, Lille, Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich or Inter Milan
Aston Villa’s quarter-final draw and path to the final
Meanwhile Villa’s quarter-final opponent is already set, and it is against Europe’s form side PSG.
Their penalty shootout win over Liverpool cemented their status as serious contenders for this competition, and Emery will require all of his knockout tournament nous to reach the semi-finals.
But if Villa manage that, then they could face Arsenal, a game they would go into with a relative degree of confidence after their recent domestic successes.
The alternative is one of the Madrid sides, which would undoubtedly be a brilliant occasion, but again one Villa would head into as second favourites.
On the same side of the draw as the Gunners, Villa’s potential final opponents are the same – but having beaten Lille in the Conference League last April and Bayern Munich in the group phase, the Midlanders have proven anything is possible.
Quarter-final: PSG
Semi-final: Arsenal, PSV, Atletico Madrid or Real Madrid
Final: Barcelona, Lille, Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich or Inter Milan