Draw leaves managerless Spurs facing reunion with former boss Ramos
Tottenham, who sacked Andre Villas-Boas yesterday, topped Group K with six wins from as many matches and will be regarded as one of the favourites to win the competition.
They will start as favourites against Dnipro, who finished second in Group E behind Fiorentina, while Greek side PAOK or last season’s runners-up Benfica lie in wait after the draw was also made for the last-16 in Nyon.
Swansea face a much more daunting route after being paired with Napoli, managed by former Liverpool and Chelsea boss Rafael Benitez.
The Swans, unlike Spurs, were unseeded for yesterday’s draw and were guaranteed tough opposition.
Michael Laudrup may feel his side have received the harshest possible draw, with Napoli still seething from their elimination from the Champions League last week.
The Serie A side won four of six games to sit alongside Borussia Dortmund and Arsenal but had to settle for third in Group F due to an inferior head-to-head record against their rivals.
Should Swansea cause an upset, they will face either Portuguese champions Porto or Eintracht Frankfurt.
Juventus must return to Turkey, the scene of their surprise Champions League exit, after the draw pitted the Serie A leaders against Trabzonspor.
The Bianconeri surrendered their place in the knockout stages of Europe’s premier competition by losing at Galatasaray last week and dropped into the Europa League, meaning they will host Trabzonspor in Turin on February 20 before heading to the transcontinental nation a week later.
The reigning Italian champions will hope to put the disappointment of a curtailed Champions League campaign behind them by reaching the final which will be held at their Juventus Stadium on May 14.
Serie A rivals Lazio will host Ludogorets of Bulgaria while Fiorentina venture to Denmark to tackle Esbjerg.
The Spanish Primera Division is represented by Valencia, who have been tasked with a tough trip to Dynamo Kiev of Ukraine, while Sevilla visit Maribor in Slovenia as city rivals Real Betis host Russians Rubin Kazan.
Lyon are the only side keeping the French flag flying and visit Chornomorets with Eintracht Frankfurt looking to further the Bundesliga’s cause against 2003 and 2011 winners Porto.
Dutch giants Ajax drop down from the Champions League and host surprise Austrian package Red Bull Salzburg in Amsterdam.
Elsewhere, Victoria Plzen host Shakhtar Donetsk and Maccabi Tel-Aviv entertain Basle in Israel. Benfica are in Greece to play PAOK as Czech hopefuls Slovan Liberec welcome AZ Alkmaar.
Anzhi Makhachkala tackle Belgian opposition in the form of Genk.
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