Europa League draw as it happened: Arsenal to face CSKA Moscow in quarter-finals

FULL STORY: Arsenal draw CSKA Moscow, Atletico to take on Sporting

Arsene Wenger hints he'd like to avoid Europa League 'favourites' Atletico Madrid ahead of quarter-final draw

Arsenal have been drawn to play CSKA Moscow in the quarter-finals of the Europa League.

The first leg is to be played on the 5 April with the reverse fixture to be played a week later, on 12 April.

Arsenal qualified for the quarter-finals after cruising past AC Milan in the Round of 16 stage and Swedish side Ostersund in the last 32.

In the other quarter-final ties, Atletico Madrid face Sporting Lisbon, RB Leipzig tackle Marseille and Lazio take on Red Bull Salzburg.

Relive the live draw below...

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What time does it start?

The draw for the Europa League quarter-finals starts at 12:00 GMT.

Where can I watch it?

The draw will be shown live on BT Sport 3 and BT Sport 3 HD. You can also follow it on The Independent’s live blog.

When are the quarter-finals?

The first legs will take place in Thursday 5 April, with the return legs a week later on 12 April.

Odds

Atletico 13/8

Arsenal 4/1

Rb Leipzig 7/1

Lazio 8/1

Marseille 9/1

RB Slazburg 16/1

Sporting Lisbon 16/1

CSKA Moscow 20/1

[16 March 2018 11:31 · Jack de Menezes]

Good morning and welcome to The Independent's live coverage of today's Europa League draw, where Arsenal will discover who they will play in the quarter-finals as the lone Premier League side left in the competition.

[16 March 2018 11:36 · Samuel Lovett]

Before moving on with the Europa League, here's a reminder of the Champions League draw in which Liverpool and Manchester City were notably drawn against one another: 

[16 March 2018 11:45 · Samuel Lovett]

So how did Arsenal make it to this stage? I'm glad you asked. See the reports below for the side's 5-1 aggregate win over AC Milan:

• Danny Welbeck leads Arsenal into Europa League quarter-finals with brace against lacklustre AC Milan
• Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Aaron Ramsey hand revitalised Arsenal control of Europa League tie against AC Milan

[16 March 2018 11:49 · Samuel Lovett]

Written before Thursday's win over AC Milan, this piece on Arsenal still remains relevant to Arsene Wenger's side. Written by your kind host, please direct any thoughts to the comments section below. I promise to get back to you in due course...

[16 March 2018 11:52 · Samuel Lovett]

So who is in today's Europa League draw? The teams are as follows:

• Arsenal (ENG)
• Atlético Madrid (ESP)
• CSKA Moskva (RUS)
• Lazio (ITA)
• Leipzig (GER)
• Marseille (FRA)
• Salzburg (AUT)
• Sporting CP (POR)

[16 March 2018 11:53 · Samuel Lovett]

When will the matches be played?

The first legs will be on Thursday 5 April, with the returns taking place on Thursday 12 April. The exact schedule will be confirmed in the afternoon of the draw.

What comes next?

Quarter-finals: 5 & 12 April

Semi-final draw: 13 April

Semi-finals: 26 April & 3 May

Final: Wednesday 16 May, Stade de Lyon, Lyon

[16 March 2018 11:56 · Samuel Lovett]

Arsene Wenger speaking last night after his side's win over AC Milan:

[16 March 2018 11:59 · Samuel Lovett]

Martin Keown on today's draw and who Arsenal will want to avoid...

"You wouldn't necessarily want to play Marseille, and Salzburg have just put out Dortmund. CSKA Moscow - nobody really wants to travel that sort of distance… Arsenal won't want to play Atlético Madrid; they can avoid them and keep them for the final."

That doesn't leave many teams left, Martin.

[16 March 2018 12:04 · Samuel Lovett]

Okay, we're only a couple of minutes away from the draw as we're treated to the usual, overly dramatic montages of each of the eight teams.

[16 March 2018 12:06 · Samuel Lovett]

Éric Abidal will be helping carry out today's draw. A true legend of the game.