Liverpool could get major Champions League boost as new Chelsea advantage emerges

Liverpool and Chelsea found out more about their possible pathways to the Champions League final during Friday's draw, and the Blues have a tricky couple of games around their last-16 tie

Arne Slot and Liverpool could face Chelsea in the last 16(Image: Getty Images)

Liverpool could face Chelsea in the Champions League for the first time in 17 years later this season, after the pair were placed on a collision course in Friday's draw.

Incredibly, the two teams faced off in the Champions League in five successive seasons between the 2004-05 and 2008-09 campaigns, but they have not met in Europe since.

Should Liverpool and Chelsea get past Galatasaray and Paris Saint-Germain, respectively, in the last 16, they will meet each other in the quarter-finals.

There is little to split the two sides in the Premier League at the moment, with both teams currently sitting on 45 points after 27 games of the top-flight season.

Liverpool and Chelsea are in direct competition for a place in next season's Champions League, and one wonders whether that might be a factor when this season's Champions League continues.

Chelsea faces Newcastle after the first leg against PSG, before a trip to Everton after the second leg. Liverpool, meanwhile, has a home game against Tottenham after the first leg against Galatasaray, before a trip to Brighton after the second leg.

Considering Newcastle and Everton are both currently higher than Tottenham and Brighton in the Premier League standings, it would be fair to suggest that Liverpool's assignments are easier on paper.

Chelsea's Champions League last-16 opponent is also much tougher than Liverpool's, so that period in the season will provide a stern test of Chelsea's credentials.

Chelsea and Liverpool met in the Champions League on countless occasions in the 2000s(Image: 2005 AFP)

With a two-legged game against PSG thrown in amidst a tricky few league fixtures, Chelsea could well slip up in the race to qualify for the Champions League.

Remarkably, three of Liverpool's Champions League assignments against Chelsea during the noughties came at the semi-final stage — in 2005, 2007, and 2008, with Liverpool coming out on top in 2005 and 2007, and Chelsea emerging victorious in 2008.

Meanwhile, during the 2005-06 season, it was permitted for teams from the same association to be drawn against each other in the group stage, and that is exactly what happened.

Both games ended in forgettable 0-0 draws, but it did not hinder either side, as Liverpool and Chelsea finished in first and second place in the group to advance to the next stage of the competition.

In 2009, Chelsea advanced from the quarter-finals after winning the first leg 3-1 at Anfield before a 4-4 draw at Stamford Bridge.