2015–16 UEFA Youth League knockout phase

The 2015–16 UEFA Youth League knockout phase (play-offs and round of 16 onwards) began on 9 February 2016 and concluded on 18 April 2016 with the final at Colovray Stadium in Nyon, Switzerland, which decided the champions of the 2015–16 UEFA Youth League. A total of 24 teams competed in the knockout phase.[1]

Times up to 26 March 2016 (play-offs, round of 16 and quarter-finals) were CET (UTC+1), thereafter times (semi-finals and final) were CEST (UTC+2).

Round and draw dates

The schedule of the competition was as follows (all draws were held at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland).[1][2]

Round	Draw	Match dates
Play-offs	14 December 2015, 14:00	9–10 February 2016
Round of 16	15 February 2016, 13:00	23–24 February 2016
Quarter-finals		8–9 March 2016
Semi-finals		15 April 2016 at Colovray Stadium, Nyon
Final		18 April 2016 at Colovray Stadium, Nyon

Format

The knockout phase involved 24 teams: 16 teams which qualified from the UEFA Champions League Path (eight group winners and eight group runners-up), and eight teams which qualified from the Domestic Champions Path (eight second round winners):[1]

The eight group winners from the UEFA Champions League Path entered the round of 16.
The eight group runners-up from the UEFA Champions League Path and the eight second round winners from the Domestic Champions Path entered the play-offs. The eight play-off winners advanced to the round of 16.

Each tie in the knockout phase was played over one match. If the scores were level after full-time, the match was decided by a penalty shoot-out (no extra time was played).[1]

The mechanism of the draws for each round was as follows:

In the draw for the play-offs, the eight second round winners from the Domestic Champions Path were drawn against the eight group runners-up from the UEFA Champions League Path, with the teams from the Domestic Champions Path hosting the match. Teams from the same association could not be drawn against each other.
In the draw for the round of 16, the eight group winners from the UEFA Champions League Path were drawn against the eight play-off winners. Teams from the same UEFA Champions League Path group could not be drawn against each other, but teams from the same association could be drawn against each other. The draw also decided the home team for each round of 16 match.
In the draws for the quarter-finals onwards, there were no seedings, and teams from the same UEFA Champions League Path group or the same association could be drawn against each other. The draws also decided the home team for each quarter-final, and the "home" team for administrative purposes for each semi-final and final (which were played at a neutral venue).

Qualified teams

UEFA Champions League Path

Group	Winners (enter round of 16)	Runners-up (enter play-offs as away team)
A	Paris Saint-Germain	Real Madrid
B	PSV Eindhoven	CSKA Moscow
C	Benfica	Atlético Madrid
D	Manchester City	Sevilla
E	Barcelona	Roma
F	Dinamo Zagreb	Arsenal
G	Chelsea	Dynamo Kyiv
H	Lyon	Valencia

Domestic Champions Path

Second round winners (enter play-offs as home team)
Celtic
Elfsborg
Anderlecht
Middlesbrough
Ajax
Red Bull Salzburg
Midtjylland
Příbram

Play-offs

The draw for the play-offs was held on 14 December 2015.[3][4] The play-offs were played on 9 and 10 February 2016.

Team 1	Score	Team 2
Ajax	3–1	Sevilla
Příbram	2–2 (5–4 p)	CSKA Moscow
Red Bull Salzburg	0–4	Roma
Anderlecht	2–0	Arsenal
Celtic	1–1 (3–4 p)	Valencia
Elfsborg	1–3	Real Madrid
Middlesbrough	5–0	Dynamo Kyiv
Midtjylland	4–4 (5–4 p)	Atlético Madrid

9 February 2016