Villa handed Moscow test in Cup
Uefa Cup round of 32 draw: Copenhagen v Man City; Aston Villa v CSKA Moscow; Shakhtar Donetsk v Spurs
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Tottenham came close to being knocked out of the Uefa Cup this evening before earning a 2-2 draw against Spartak Moscow and reaching the next stage. |  |
Friday, 19, Dec 2008 10:31
Aston Villa have been handed a tough draw in the next round of the Uefa Cup with a two-legged tie against Russian giants CSKA Moscow.
Martin O'Neill's side finished third in their group, meaning they were paired against one of the pool winners.
And arguably CSKA were one of the most difficult teams they could have faced, given the perfect record they boast from the four group matches - the only team to have achieved such a feat.
If Villa can successfully navigate their last-32 tie against the Russians, they could face another English side in the next round - provided Tottenham Hotspur find a way past Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk.
The other English team left in the competition – Manchester City – topped their group despite defeat to Racing Santander last night and are rewarded with a tie against Danish opponents FC Copenhagen.
The winners of that tie face either Aalborg - who finished third in the Champions League group won by City's cross-town rivals Manchester United - or Spanish giants Deportivo la Coruna.
Elsewhere, arguably the tie of the round sees seven-time European champions AC Milan of Italy take on three-time Uefa Cup semi-finalists Werder Bremen of Germany.
The other stand-out matches pit Ukrainian side Dynamo Kiev with Spanish outfit Valencia; Fiorentina of Italy take on Dutch giants Ajax; and French club Paris St Germain play Wolfsburg of Germany.
Holders Zenit St Petersburg, who dropped into the competition after finishing third in their Champions League group, take on Bundesliga side VfB Stuttgart.
Full Uefa Cup round of 32 draw:
Paris St Germain v Wolfsburg
FC Copenhagen v Manchester City
NEC Nijmegen v Hamburg SV
Sampdoria v Metalist Kharkiv
SC Braga v Standard Liege
Aston Villa v CSKA Moscow
Lech Poznan v Udinese
Olympiakos v St Etienne
Fiorentina v Ajax
Aalborg v Deportivo la Coruna
Werder Bremen v AC Milan
Bordeaux v Galatasaray
Dynamo Kiev v Valencia
Zenit St Petersburg v VfB Stuttgart
Marseille v FC Twente
Shakhtar Donetsk v Tottenham Hotspur
Ties to be played on February 18th/19th and February 26th.
Uefa Cup round of 16 draw:
Werder Bremen/AC Milan v Olympiakos/St Etienne
Aston Villa/CSKA Moscow v Shakhtar Donetsk v Tottenham Hotspur
Lech Poznan/Udinese v Zenit St Petersburg/VfB Stuttgart
Paris St Germain/Wolfsburg v SC Braga/Standard Liege
Dynamo Kiev/Valencia v Sampdoria/Metalist Kharkiv
FC Copenhagen/Manchester City v Aalborg/Deportivo la Coruna
Marseille/FC Twente v Fiorentina/Ajax
NEC Nijmegen/Hamburg SV v Bordeaux/Galatasaray
Ties to be played on March 12th and March 18th/19th.