Barcelona’s elimination from the UEFA Champions League served as a major blow for the club. It is the second time in a row that the team has been knocked out of the group stages of the prestigious tournament.
However, Barça still have the opportunity to earn something out of Europe this season as they look to compete in the playoffs for the UEFA Europa League, where they will come up against the second-placed teams in the group stages of UEL.
With no La Liga teams in the midst, Barcelona are eligible to play all of the eight teams that finished second in the group stages of the Europa League.
There are some big teams in the mix, with Manchester United being a potential opponent in this playoff round. PSV Eindhoven and Jose Mourinho’s AS Roma are in contention to face the Catalans as well.
Barcelona were drawn against Napoli last season in this stage of the competition. They were able to oust the Italians but were ultimately knocked out of the competition by champions Eintracht Frankfurt at the quarter-final stages.
Other teams in contention to face Barcelona are French clubs AS Monaco, FC Nantes and Stade Rennais. Bundesliga leaders Union Berlin are in the equation as well and could welcome the opportunity to host a club such as Barça at Stadion An der Alten Fosterei.
FC Midtjylland could arguably the least challenging tie for Barcelona, although following their elimination from the Champions League, the Catalans do have a point to prove and could welcome a tougher opponent.