Chelsea discover Conference League Round of 16 opponents

Having finished first in the league phase of the competition, the Blues entered today’s draw at UEFA’s headquarters as part of a seeded pair alongside second-placed Vitoria.

It ensured two potential opponents – Real Betis or Copenhagen – lay in wait for Enzo Maresca and his players following last night’s knockout phase play-offs.

The Blues were drawn second and were pitted against Copenhagen. We were subsequently placed on the green, right side of the bracket. Meanwhile, Vitoria will face Real Betis and occupy the corresponding spot on the silver, left-hand side of the bracket.

As a seeded club for the draw, Chelsea will also play the first leg away from home, meaning we will travel to the Danish capital at Copenhagen’s Parken Stadium on Thursday 6 March. The reverse fixture at Stamford Bridge takes place a week later on Thursday 13 March.

• Click for ticket news for the home leg versus Copenhagen

With all opponents known until the final, today’s draw also determined the order of the matches for the quarter-finals and semi-finals.

We have faced Copenhagen on four previous occasions. The first meeting came in the European Cup Winners’ Cup second round during the 1997/98 season.

The home leg between the two sides ended in a 1-0 victory for the Blues and we progressed thanks to a 1-1 draw in the second leg, which famously saw Brian Laudrup score his only Chelsea goal before joining the Danish side days later.

We also faced Copenhagen in the UEFA Champions League last-16 during the 2010/11 campaign. Two goals from Nicolas Anelka ensured victory in the away leg before a goalless draw at Stamford Bridge guaranteed our progression.

Should we progress beyond Copenhagen, we would face one of Legia Warsaw or Molde in the quarter-finals.

The Blues would host the first leg at Stamford Bridge on Thursday 10 April with the reverse fixture taking place Thursday 17 April.

And were we to reach the semi-finals, the first leg would be at home on Thursday 1 May with the second leg being played away on Thursday 8 May.

The final will be played at the Stadion Wrocław in Wroclaw, Poland on Wednesday 28 May.